An Arcing Dimensional Spectrum
by spiffydescalchop
Summary: Just your everyday RWBY fanfic. Or is it? When 10 year old Jaune Arc is feeling down, he's kidnapped by an older man who resembles him and even has the exact same name. He ends up training under his kidnapper for 6 years before he is able to return home. Now 17 year old Jaune Arc finds himself in another predicament. He now has a time traveling daughter.
1. Pre-show

**Welcome to the story; An Arcing Dimensional Spectrum, a story about time travel, alternate realities, RWBY, OP Jaune, harems and finally, the game aspect that Fire Emblem Awakening did great with but Fates fucked up, children from the many characters and Jaune. All in all, this fanfic will be really combat oriented and won't have as much explaining as my other story. I will tell you this though, each of the time travelers come from different dimensions so there will be major differences between the children; they don't just spawn from Jaune's choice of girlfriend. Some of the worlds are destroyed, some are saved, some have grimm as the only species, some have lacked grimm from the beginning of time. The only thing that's similar between the worlds is the child that moves to this stories world; they have some relation to Jaune(Mostly by blood.) and that they have met with a god named Chronos who gave them special powers on top of their semblance. **

**With the basic premise out of the way, let me get into some rules and other shit. Firstly this fanfic is rated M; for my other fanfic "gamer with a twist", I don't know what direction the fanfic will eventually go, making the rating act as a safety measure of sorts; this fanfic however has a clear path in mind and it's not for the faint of heart. There will be gore, explicit scenes and dark themes that make this fanfic burn in churches. Secondly, this fanfic will have sex scenes in it, further cementing this fanfics M rating. These scenes have yet to be made, much less thought about but they will happen. Once one does I'll warn you guys with some bold text so you can see where it stops and starts. Underneath the bolded text I will put the genres of the scene as well as provide warnings about specific genres that may be frowned upon, allowing you to further judge whether or not you wish to read that part. Thirdly, keep an open mind about this fanfic; I have no idea in hell where I'm going to lead this story as I have been focusing on the child characters development more than the actual plot. This is because the story's premise is self explanatory and will act as a modified version of the normal RWBY plot, making my job easier as the plot has already been written. That makes child characters the top priority on the development list, they will be the ones to affect the story most and how they affect it will mirror their backstories in a way, making it important to make them before the edited part of the RWBY canon. That reminds me, only the members of team RWBY have future children who have been fully developed as of now, meaning i'll need to take a break in the future to make more. It won't take too long as I already have an idea for a ton of them, just know that it will take some time. With that all said I hope you like the fanfic, I know I will! Fanfics like these are fun for me to write, I don't really need to think ahead about the plot which means even I don't know what will happen next. So let's see what kind of chaos comes from this fanfic shall we?**


	2. Chapter 1: A clash of heroes

**Guess who? It's me, Spiffy! Let me just say; thank you for reading this fanfic, it pleases me greatly that you would give it a chance. For those who found the fanfic by chance; I hope I can please you and make this fanfic something you can look forward too. For those who traveled from my other fanfic; well...hi again! Now, let's talk a bit about the fanfic, shall we? As you guys know, this story will be based around an overpowered Jaune and his future children. But I should point out that this fanfic also has more enemies to deal with to keep this story kinda fresh. There will also be bits and pieces that I will need to warn you about or that you may dislike but please, when those parts come, just skip past it; some parts of the story are just filler, not important for the story. I swear that if someone complains about something that I warned them about, I will not hold back when sharing my thoughts on those parts of the story. Speaking of concerns; don't be confused about the first part of the story as it will be explained later in the chapter, don't let the first part turn you away from the story or make you believe I am adding false chapters. **

**With that said, enjoy!**

* * *

(Location: Ozpin's castle)

(Time: AS/After Salem.)

(World: Role reverse.)

My name is Jaune Arc; a Beacon enforcer who helped stop the White Fang rebellion and Salems group of peace seekers. I did all I could so that Ozpin could remain in power, only to have me question my morals after clearing the final stretch of hidden war we won. After we snuffed out Salem's lackys, I often found myself wondering if it is ok to let hunters rule over the people lie slaves. Eventually I rebelled, using my skills that were taught by my abusive family before I slaughtered them all. I walked into Beacon with a sword in my hand, killing anyone who got in my path; stealing their semblance and aura capacities with my semblance. This included my old comrades as well. Though all my other trials were tough this was a whole new level of challenge. But I suppose that's fitting for the last task I will do in my lifetime. Even if I succeed the news will spread to other hunters who will then track me down in hordes, eventually killing me. That won't stop me though, I already made peace with my demons and am prepared for the consequences. The elevator door opens up and reveals the tyrant known as Ozpin, currently Oscar. He looks to me with glare as walks around his desk.

"What do you want peasant?" He says with venom in his voice.

"I'm here to make this world a better place." I say, drawing my sword.

"So says the man who killed his friends and was once on the side you are now against." He taunts as he sits on his desk.

"They were associates, we held no special bond and I only tolerated them because my eyes weren't open to the ways of the world." I shift my sheath to a shield. "Pyrrha was a glory seeker whose grave I robbed after she foolishly got herself killed by running off on her own. Ren was a sociopath who didn't have any sort of emotion whatsoever. Nora was a psychopath who killed people at random, on her side or not. Yang abused her peers. Blake killed people who were weak. Weiss enslaved faunus. Ruby tested weapons on pedestrians. While all of them were awful people, I can now see I was the worst of all; I stood back and watched even joining in from time to time. I can never be forgiven, but I can sure go out with a bang."

"Fool. I'm immortal, killing me won't stop me. But it makes sense that someone with your test scores wouldn't be bright enough to remember that fact." Oscar smirks.

"That's why I brought these." I pull some items out of my backpack. The relics from Salem's campaign.

Oscar loses it. "What!? Impossible! The reports said that they were destroyed during the great battle! So how-"

"Simple, it was a made up report. If you remember correctly, I was the one who made it. But I suppose that someone who didn't know that my transcripts were falsified couldn't tell the difference." I snark as the relics float around me.

With a blinding light, the two gods appear in front of us. The dark god stares at Oscar and I with his arms crossed while his brother, the light god looked at Oscar with fury.

"**When I asked you to unify the world did you think I meant this!? You will be punished for this Ozma!"** The brother of light shouts.

"I-I-" Oscar stammers before he is disintegrated. Leaving only his aura's essence behind. I absorb it and it's properties, turning to the gods.

"**Truly disappointing, I thought that humanity could come together and live in harmony. But I was sorely mistaken. It's time to end this world once and for all."** The dark god lifts his hand in the air to, I assume, obliterate our world.

I close my eyes in preparation for my end, a smile on my face. I knew what would happen, but it doesn't make me any less pleased about the situation. No matter what anyone did in the future, past or present this world would remain rotten. Only this could truly save our world, as much as it saddens me. I know that this won't forgive the sins I've committed; but at least I did what I could for my world. I just wished I could have had a chance to do more.

"_**Your wish has been granted through the strength of your resolve."**_ An echoing voice says.

I open my eyes and look at my surroundings. Everything had stopped; the gears in the clocktower; the enraged gods; the many scared and oppressed citizens. The world as a whole was put on pause.

"_**Just know that what you want comes with rules. Should you accept them and follow them to the letter, you will get the chance to see your goal through. If you don't, you will become like the many people of this dying world. So, your verdict?"**_ The voice asks.

"What do you mean by granting my wish? Do you mean my wish to do more good for people? If so, how would you be able to grant that?" I ask.

"_**Simple; with your world fading from existence, the only way to achieve your wish is go to another, which holds a majority of benefits. For example, your world makes it extraordinarily difficult to do good, the world I send you to would be far more accepting of your kindness. Of course, you would giving your kindness in specific ways under my orders. There are reasons for my leadership being necessary for this but you needn't know them now. You will have all the time in the world to do that later. Now to the main point, is it a yes or no?"**_ The disembodied voice says.

"What are the repercussions? I've lived too long to know that things like these don't come for free." I question with hostility.

"_**Of course there's a price. You can't get anything for nothing, there is always a trade. But you needn't worry about that; the cost has already been paid in full. I wasn't kidding when I said your wish was granted with the strength of resolve. Determination is one of the greatest energisers for the supernatural, allowing people to summon demons and monsters with just willpower alone. Your wish to do more for redemption brought me here. Now, do we have a deal?"**_ The voices asks once more.

I look down and put my hand to my chin. After some thought I came to a decision. "Yes, I accept!" When I looked up I found a massive humanoid figure crouching in front of me as if to meet my eyes. It had the look of an old time detective with a tattered trench coat and fedora. What really stuck out was that his entire body was covered in chains and cords, each one leading to a stopwatch. He held out his freakishly long arm out to me; in his hand was a scroll made of paper that unraveled into a contract.

"_**Then sign here."**_ I did as he asked then handed him the contract. In an instant the contract was nowhere to be found. The human looking creature stood tall with his arms outstretched. "_**And thus the contract has been made. An unbreakable promise, sealed and weaved through fate as it's chiseled through destiny. Jaune Arc; your wish for forgiveness as of now is on trial. And I, the god of time Chronos, shall be your judge!"**_

Everything started to blur around me, making me feel dizzy. I stick my sword into the ground to stable myself as my legs buckle. My head is then forcefully lifted upwards, my face staring right into the face of the being known as Chronos. His face was that of a grandfather clocks; both the hands were at the twelve until both began spinning rapidly. I was put into a trance and eventually blacked out. The rules of the contract burning into my head as I slept.

* * *

(Location: Forest outskirts.)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon.)

(World: Tampered world.)

I opened my eyes and sat up as I woke. Looking around, I found myself at the border of a familiar forest. It looked exactly like the one in my hometown, except it was sunny out. For the first time in my life, I was able to witness a blue sky; something I only ever heard stories about. It was beautiful. My stupor was sadly interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Saffron, wait up!" A young boys voice rang out, prompting me to flee and hide by the trees.

"Can't be a hero if you can't keep up! Especially at this pace!" A blonde teen shouted over her shoulder as she ran past my hiding spot.

'Saffron? What the hell is that bitch doing here?' I think to myself. I watched as she disappeared from my sight; minutes later, a boy in a bunny hoodie that was much too big for him entered my vision.

"Sis…*Huff*...please…" The boy huffed. He was exhausted, sweat poured out of his forehead like a waterfall as he leaned on a nearby tree.

'What in the-!?' I stared. This kid looked exactly like me when I was younger, even called the bitch sis.

"_**Now you realize."**_ The echoing voice from the tyrants office said in my head. "_**This world is not your own. In this world, the roles are reversed from what you know. The good guys you knew are the bad now and vice versa. The children you saw are indeed Arcs but not yours. Yours abused you, tormented you, betrayed you, turning you into the monster of a fighter you are today. This Arc family is overprotective of their children, the Jaune who was trained into a mass murderer is instead an aspiring hero who is held back for his own safety. In fact he is the focus of your first good deed."**_

'What do you mean?' I ask.

"_**Every world of remnant has something different about them. The differences can be many or few, large or little; but one thing is almost always followed. The basic premise of the timeline; unless included on the list of differences, the usual story of Jaune Arc involves him fighting Salem's forces after joining Beacon with falsified transcripts. You had to falsify your transcripts because you weren't from a prestigious family. Can you guess why this Jaune will falsify his?"**_ He asks.

"Because he's weak." I quickly reply, the answer being as plain as day.

"_**Correct. Usually this would work out; he would grow to be a great fighter. But great won't cut it this time. Salem's power is stronger than ever before, her underlings are greater in number and later on, the grimm will be twice as strong and have a population that's ten times the original. This Jaune's future strength will get him killed before he even decides to go to Beacon. That's where you come in; you will train him to be better than you ever were at his age, make him strong without completely breaking his mind, morals or personality. Then once that task is complete, you will give him your collection semblances and your aura capacity."**_ He says.

"Why? Wouldn't it make more sense if I kept them instead of giving them to him? I could help out more that way." I point out.

"_**While that is true. You must adhere to the rules of the contract. One of the rules is natural time flow law. It stops you from making butterfly effects that aren't allowed by me. You can't touch anything I don't let you touch, you can't say things I don't allow you to say. This is so the people of this world can see their collective stories through without it being meddled by a person who's story has already been told. Now, do your duty."**_ The voice cuts off. Leaving me alone with the young me who was catching his breath and my thoughts. There was only one way I knew how to gain disciples without fail. I took my cloak and made a makeshift bag, then wrapped it around the young boys head until he fainted. I then dragged him to the only hidden place I know, a secret space that were in the mines I was forced to work in when I was five.

* * *

(Location: ?)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon.)

(World: Tampered world.)

(POV: Young Jaune Arc.)

Today started like any other day. I dragged myself out of bed, had some pumpkin pete cereal and begged my father to train me. He would never say yes so I always had to resort to the only one in our family who would listen to me, my sister Saffron. Saffron would always help me out when I asked her, it made me look up to her more than I already did. But lately she's been upping the difficulty of training to brutal levels, I can't keep up anymore, but I think that's her goal. I know that I am helpless when it comes to things like this, my sisters talk about it behind my back all the time, it just hurts to know that she's starting to think the same. I would try and try but everyday I train with her I'm left behind. Then I would head home and hide in my room, ashamed of another failure. But today was different. When I was left gasping for air by the trees, I somehow fainted.

It was odd; I got tired and out of breath but never had I fainted. It made me doubt if I could make my dream come true. But when I opened my eyes those doubts became fears. I was laying on a cold stone floor in complete darkness, the only sound that could be heard was the echo of dripping water. Needless to say I panicked, struggled to get up until I found I was bound with rope. Putting two and two together, I realized I was kidnapped.

"U-um, excuse me. Is anyone there? I'm sorry but I don't have money so could you let me go? Please?...Hello?" Nobody responded, leaving me in silence. I struggled once more to loosen the ropes before I heard the sound of footsteps.

"Sorry brat, those ropes won't come undone that easily." A mature voice said.

"Who are y-you? Are you going to kill me!?" I raise my voice in fear.

"Shut it. I don't want to kill you or take your money. All I want is to become a benefactor of yours, whether you see that as a good thing or a bad thing is up to you." He says sternly.

"What d-do you mean?" I ask.

"You want to be a hero, right?" He questions.

"More than anything!" I instantly reply.

"Then grow up. Hero's are fantasy characters and cover ups for malicious acts. What you're trying to do is become a huntsman, the difference between the two are vast. You want justice, huntsman want money; heroes save unconditionally, huntsman are paid to save others; heroes live to fight bad guys, huntsman fight both. If you want to be a hero so bad then stick to playing video games." His harsh words stab into me.

"Your wrong!" I shout back.

"That's just how the world works you parent leach. Heroes are fiction, huntsman aren't. Huntsman aren't heroes, they are glorified soldiers."

"A huntsman acts on their ideals! Some of them are bad and some of them are good. I know that already and it won't stop me!" I say with determination.

He moves towards me, his face came close to mine as he smiled. He looked kind of like my dad. "Precisely! However you won't be anything as you are now. The weak die out after all and the strong survive."

"Then i'll get stronger!"

"And I will help you, train you to be strong. If you can, you will without a doubt have the power to see your dreams through and prove everyone else wrong." He says. "So, would like my help in becoming a killing machine?"

"No. I want your help to be strong!" I correct.

"Same difference." The older guy replies.

"No, you're wrong!"

"Just shut up! The longer you blabber the longer you'll remain as weak as you are. If you really want to convince me then you should make me eat my words. After all, history is written by the victor. Hell, I'll even train you to do it. What do you say?" He holds out a hand.

After some thought I respond. "Yeah. I'll make you see my way. I won't rest until I beat you and prove to you that heroes exist!"

He gives me a confused smirk before he gains a smile. "Well said. Tell me your name kid."

"Jaune, Jaune Arc."

"Ditto."

I give him a confused glance. "Ditto?"

"No I mean...never mind, Ditto it is." Ditto huffs.

After a long silence, Ditto speaks again. "Did you mean it when you said you wouldn't rest until you beat me?"

"Yeeeeah?" I confirm cautiously.

"That's good cause I'm not letting you leave until you do." Ditto says casually.

"What!"

* * *

(Location: The Arc household.)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon.)

(World: Tampered world.)

(POV: Saffron Arc.)

I just got home after my training with Jaune. If I am being honest it's getting to be a huge pain in my behind. He takes a lot of time out of my life so we can train, time I could use to hang with my friends. Don't get me wrong, I love my little bro; he's just affecting my normal high school life in ways that I wish he didn't. I shouldn't have training regimens in my head! Instead I should be thinking about boys instead...or girls, honestly my teenage brain is having a hard time on the sexuality front. He's just not cut out for fighting or any sort of physical activity whatsoever. He's a smart cookie but his head is filled with superheroes. But I can't just tell him off, it would crush him. His dream for heroism is quite literally the only dream he has ever had in his life. My only hope is to have him see how hard it is and quit on his own. To do that, I have upped the training to levels even normal fighters have difficulty with. I feel bad about it but gosh darn it, I have a life too!

Right now I'm waiting for Jaune. With how far ahead I was he should be back in an hour. So I waited; a minute went by, then five, then twenty; eventually I waited two hours for Jaune and I was getting worried. He's never taken this long to get home before. With my ever growing concern present, I tell my parents to send a search part. I just hope Jaune's alright.

{Timeskip}

We couldn't find him. We spent a whole day searching for him with the towns aid but Jaune was nowhere to be found. The local detectives said that the situation wasn't as simple as getting lost in the forest. No, what caused Jaune to disappear wasn't natural, it was most definitely a kidnapping done by a hunter. They said that a grimm would leave blood behind, that a runaway as young as Jaune would leave tracks and that a trapped child would scream for help when called. Their biggest piece of evidence was the fact that their tracking dogs couldn't track him down. All of this confirmed that Jaune was taken by a huntsman/huntress with the aid of a mobility based semblance. They also said to prepare for the worst as the perpetrators motives are unknown.

This news was taken in different ways by the various family members of the Arc household. Mom was crying while dad was consoling her; but they were older, more mature ,they understood that this was just something that happens in the world and must stand as strong as they can. They also knew that we needed time to ourselves. Three of the Arc siblings hid in their rooms to bawl, remembering the good times with their bro. One shut down and couldn't comprehend nor make the right emotions for the situations. One sibling through a fit of rage and left the house for a bit. And the youngest Arc sibling kept asking why we were so sad and where our brother was. It was bad for all of us, the impact created by Jaunes disappearance hit us hard, but I think I had it the worst. I was the one who let him go out there, I was the one pushed him, I was the one who ran ahead to make him quit. Mom and Dad tell me it isn't my fault but something inside me says it is. That part inside me is ferocious, it blames everyone; me, my sisters, my parents, the townspeople, the detectives, and most of all, the kidnapper. I swear on the Arc family name that I will kill your kidnapper Jaune...and an Arc NEVER goes back on their word.

* * *

**Soooo, how was it? I think it was pretty good, a tad rough on the edges but still good. The first few chapters won't be about Jaune in beacon but instead a small collection of key events over his years of training. Now that it's over, I want to say a few things:**

**Firstly I would like to say that this story was inspired by another story called "****Untold Story: How You Made Us" by Axel Yamamoto that stopped updating in 2017. I loved the premise and was very sad to see that it stopped updating, so I made something similar. **

**Secondly, I would like to ask you guys to leave comments for the chapter; it will not only help me make the story better but also see that you guys care to some extent about the story. Every complement makes me feel good and helps me know that future chapters won't be pointless. Every criticism will make me think more about the story, helping me build the story and explain what may be misunderstood or simply not implemented. Every hateful comment/flame comment...well...for those who read my other fanfic, you know exactly what that does for me. **

**Thirdly, check out my other fanfic "Rwby: A gamer with a twist" to give it support. Link is right here for you to view it. s/13124298/1/Rwby-A-gamer-with-a-twist**

**Fourthly(fourthly?), the maintenance for the fanfic above is moving steadily so far so get prepared!**

**Lastly, I will be making a soon under the name "SpiffyDeSage". I'll be making cool art over there as well as some animations so go check it out when it's ready!**

**That wraps everything up. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 2: Family troubles

**Hello dear readers, Spiffy here. **

**I want to thank the many people who are giving this story life. I mean look at the following; almost 30 people in a few chapters is a crazy number to me. So I want to thank you all, especially Alewar Warinot, the first reviewer for the story. I hear you loud and clear buddy****, I'll try my best to make the story look cleaner as you requested. Your comments are the kind I'm looking for, they help me better myself as a writer after all. **

**Now let's get in to some info on the story. Last chapter, young Jaunes was 10 years old; this chapter he is 11 years old. This is because there is a gap in between the canon of RWBY and the first chapters events. **

**This information is important to know because the canon will begin in a few chapters. I know it's a huge part of the stories summary but bear with me please. I feel it's important to hold off on the beacon part of the story for a bit as I can explain some key points better. It won't be 50 chapters until the beacon arc. It will be more around the 5th chapter, maybe 7th that it will begin.**

**Speaking of the beacon arc; I would also like to say that aside from the changes in the Arc family, more enemies, Jaune being OP and the future children; this fanfic will not stray too far from the canon. **

**The Arc family has to change because of the way I made Jaune OP in the story. Him being kidnapped would make something similar happen to any family going through a kidnapped child incident, especially a child as loved as I perceive Jaune to be.**

**The "more enemies" won't have too great of an impact for those who are worried. I just wanted to spice things up a bit for the story. This includes more Grimm and more evil OCs. I did this for two reasons:**

**-One, as much as I like seeing OP characters style on other characters I want you viewers to have something new to see Jaune fight.**

**-Two, my OCD hates the fact that Salem has so many empty seats at her operatives table so I'll just fill them.**

**Jaune being OP doesn't affect much of the plot, it just makes things play out differently than they normally would.**

**The future children will not really change the canon, just add more to it.**

**Anyway, that's all I have to say, happy reading.**

* * *

(Location: Hideout)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon.(After this the "time" will no longer be shown until a change occurs.))

(World: Tampered world.(After this the "world" will no longer be shown until a change occurs.))

(POV: Jaune Arc.("Young Jaune Arc" will now be called "Jaune Arc" while the Jaune Arc from the other world will be called "Ditto".))

With a swift blow to my wooden sword, Ditto knocked me on my back again.

"Good; but you can do better." Ditto says with a sigh.

"It's not fair, you have aura!" I complain.

"I haven't used it once in the full year I've been training you." He grunts.

Yes, "training". I don't think this is training at all, I've seen comics where the hero's train themselves to become all-powerful and this isn't it!

I study about aura, science, math and history; staying on one subject until I can say an essays worth of info about the subject off the top of my head. I have a monthly test on all the learned subjects and If I get any answer wrong I have to relearn it again. It makes my old schools seem like heaven.

But that's not all this hell school has to offer. "Gym" class has me work until I'm at my limits. Unlike the training my sister started making me do, this training is made by an instructor who didn't care. One of the things I had to do was push ups, did them until I heard cracking and snaps. Then I was forced to do more; when I couldn't move due to exhaustion or pain he would heal me with what he called a semblance so I could do more. And this was just one of the exercises he put me through.

Eventually I would get fed up and try to quit but then Ditto would say "Sorry but the weak hold no authority.". This would of course lead to a fight for dominance like the one now. I never won.

I get up off the ground and stare my tormentor in the eyes. "Speaking of, when will I get an aura? You said you wanted me to get stronger, right?"

Ditto nods. "Yes I do. But remember what I told you about aura? It amplifies your strength, it doesn't make you all-powerful. The stronger you are before you awaken aura, the stronger

the effects of it and the better its growth is as it matures. I'm strengthening you as fast as I can so you get the most out of your aura. After all, aura fully matures when the user becomes 25 years of age; that's when aura stops growing on its own, which is the best way to increase your aura efficiently. You do remember right? Do I need to give you some supplementary lessons?"

I raise my hands up in a panic. "No! It...it just slipped my mind, that's all." I answer.

"Alright. We'll just have a day long review tomorrow." Ditto states. As much as I want to curse about the review it's still better than the week-long ones he usually gives me.

"You know what, I think it might be time to awaken his aura. He's getting better with his fighting style which means we gotta up the curriculum a bit and use some real weapons. Meaning it would be the perfect time to give him an aura so it could act as a safety net." Ditto starts mumbling to himself to the point it becomes creepy.

"Ditto?" I cautiously back away.

"You know what, I've decided to unlock your aura." He says.

"Really!?" I say surprised.

"Yeah. Honestly I wanted to wait a bit more before I did, but I'm not getting any younger and you could probably fight a huntsman in training toe-to-toe now. As I see it your barely ready by my standards." He honestly says.

"Wait, a huntsman in training!? You mean like beacon students!?" I say flabbergasted.

"Precisely. It's not too impressive but...actually it is isn't it? Your like 15-"

"I'm 11."

"Wait a minute, eleven? Holy crap, that's how young you are!?" He screamed in panic before mumbling. "I just ruined a majority of his childhood."

He paced back and forth for a few minutes before he went deeper into the cave. Moments later, he came out in his new gear.

"I'm going out for a bit. When I get back I'll unlock your aura. Occupy yourself while I'm out." He says in a soft tone.

"What about dinner?"

"You got ingredients and a portable stove, make something." With those words the stone wall opened up and closed as he passed through.

Yup, this is my life. Training, learning and solitude. Ditto leaves me all the time so I can learn independence, at least that's his excuse. While that's bad in retrospect I'm kinda thankful about that fact because Ditto can't cook worth a darn and leaves me to cook for myself. Makes me thankful for moms embarrassing lessons.

Ditto does provide the basic necessities, with quality that would make you think he stole it. I have an amazing bed, a dust powered mini-fridge and a portable stove. All of that and yet I don't have anything to do for fun. He says if I'm bored I should do some training and crud like that. It makes me angry, though I suppose that's his plan; the more I train the faster I can get out.

* * *

(Location: Outskirts.)

(POV: Ditto)

I am caught between conflict of morals in my head. Just like how Salem made me question my entire life and changed my outlook for the better, the kid made me look at myself once more. 'I took the freedom of young child for the better...isn't that whole sentence oxymoron?'

"_**Don't falter. You may have created more accidents than you could solve by training Jaune, but look at it this way. You may have made a chain reaction of problems but your pupil will solve thousands after your done with him."**_ Chronos says.

"Yeah, but...I know that a child's most important part of their life is their childhood; it guides their set personalities to define them in later years. Given his height I thought the kid was at least a teenager, during that time kids seek independence and parents begin to accept the eventual separation from their kids, especially in this Grimm ridin world we live in." I say to explain my plight. "I just don't want to end up like my dad; he stole my freedom and forced me to be what I am today. My life was hell; I don't want to make someone else's life the same."

"_**Your actions are the same, there's no denying it. But there was no other way to train Jaune Arc, his family wouldn't allow actual training. What you can do is help him, you went through the same thing, use that knowledge to help ease him through it."**_ Chronos preaches.

I continue walking along the outskirts of the town. My destination was a house on the edge of the populated area, a familiar one to be exact. My current path would lead me there undetected, which was an essential part of my plan.

Eventually I arrive at the Arc household, a decently sized house that's far enough away from the populace to make sure there's general safety from the Grimm; a small group is easier to keep happy than a large one after all. Well at least until I took Jaune. But that will be nothing compared to today; after I compromise the security of their home it will all go to hell. I won't feel bad, even if they're good people; the trauma my family instilled in my mind will never leave me.

* * *

(Location: The Arc Household.)

(POV: Gris Arc.)

I like to think I'm a man of my word, but now I feel like I can't deliver this time.

My precious daughters are torn about Jaune's disappearance. I said I would get leads but a year has already gone by and I still haven't got a clue about my son's condition or whereabouts. But as the man of the Arc family I must be strong and pray for his return.

After I finished waking my wife I begin my daily check on my family. It's a new routine I do to check on how they're holding up and to simply see if they haven't been kidnapped.

First one to check is my daughter 21, Rouge. My first child with a motherly personality and isn't afraid to enforce our family rules. She became very protective of her siblings after the incident.

"Rouge? Are you in there sweetie?" I gently ask.

There's no response. My attention is drawn to a brightly coloured sticky note with the words "Remember dad, I got a job." written on it. Allowing me to relish in relief.

Second on the list is Saffron, age 16. She was always the rebellious one, always trying to find a way to leave the nest. She was hit the hardest by all this; blaming herself, degrading herself, anything to remember her new task, her new...obsession. Bettering herself even though it's not needed.

I knock on her door. "Saffron?"

"Yeah?" Her stressed voice said through the door.

"Can I come in?" I ask.

"No." Saffron said swiftly.

"I just want to talk, can you please let me in? I just want to keep you safe." I pleaded.

"And I wanted to keep Jaune safe. I guess we're both shit outta luck." My daughter said in an irritated voice, making it obvious that I was wasting my time.

Next are my two 13 year olds, Blanc and Noir, my twin daughters. Both always acted the same, always did the same things; but what set them apart was their personalities. Noir was a devious mastermind who was brimming with emotion. Blanc on the other hand was more of a follower despite being smarter than Noir. Blanc was the opposite of Noir, she was stoic, it didn't stop her from expressing how she felt through gestures though. Both where partners in crime; now they're at each other's throats.

I knocked on their door, but before I could say their names their voices rang out.

"I'm so pissed off!" Noir said.

"Please calm down." Blanc quietly pleaded.

"Shut up! I'm not following the orders of someone who doesn't even miss Jaune!" Noir accused.

"I do miss him, I just have a hard time showing it. You know that." Blanc said with a hurt tone.

"And that's why I was his favorite between us." Noir sneered.

"Actually, I was." Blanc shot back.

"No way!"

"Yes way."

I'm just going to leave.

Now, moving on to my sixth child, Vert, who just turned 9 three days ago. She was the adventurous one, the tomboy and the foul-mouthed one. Always ready to call me old any time she can. But as of late, she's been rather quiet.

I didn't have to knock on a door this time. As I rounded the corner, I saw Vert trying to sneak out the nearby window with a backpack brimming with snacks.

"And where do you think you're going young lady?" I say in a stern voice.

Vert flinches, knowing she did something wrong. She recomposed herself a second letter to say. "I'm gonna find Jaune!"

I grab her by the backpack and begin making my way to her bedroom. "I already lost a son. I'm not losing a daughter too."

"Put me down old man!" She screams while flailing her limbs. Her struggle was in vain, however as I already put her in her room and locked the door from the outside.

Honestly, could my daughters make this any harder than it is? Well... all except one. The second youngest Arc child; 7 year old Bleue (Actual spelling). She's a prodigy to say the least, skipped two grades of school before she even experienced her second year. She's very level headed and mature enough she could be mistaken as an adult in disguise.

"Bleue? Are you there?"

A few footsteps could be heard before the door opened. "Yes, how may I help you today my father?"

"Just making sure you're still here. You doing OK?" I ask with concern.

"Your lack of faith in my mental state is concerning."

"Don't be like that, you know how much I worry about you girls. After the incident, everyone's been at their wits end."

"You don't need to worry dad, I'm not like the others. It'll take a bit more than Jaune disappearing to make me break down." Bleue began to close the door, but I stopped it with my foot.

"Don't lie to me Bleue. You may seem to be holding it together but I know better; you've been more focused on your studies, shutting people out of your life."

"...I know."

"Just remember that you can talk to me when things get rough."

"...I know…"

With that she closed the door. It went better than I expected, though to be fair she wasn't the one I was afraid of talking too. Not because she's difficult or rebellious; but because she took it harder than any of us.

I'm of course talking about the youngest Arc child, Violet. She is 5 years old but right now, she's a year back mentally. After Jaune's disappearance she's been in some sort of trance, we've tried everything at our disposal but it just doesn't help; It's like she's stuck in the past.

The doctors say that a child's mind will revert back to a previous state if an unwanted change occurs. That makes sense in my mind, Jaune was closer to Violet than anyone in our family; that includes me and my darling wife as well, much to our dismay.

When I get to her door I don't even bother knocking, I just let myself in. No matter how many times I see it; no matter how many times I brace for it; it always shocks me to the core to see this image.

My daughter was pouring pretend tea into a small cup. "Would you like some more tea Jaune?" She asked the rancid stuffed animal across from her.

After listening to it's silent answer she poured the old rabbit a glass, watching intently as it supposedly drank the tea. This was the state of my youngest child; reduced to a host for an endless tea party.

She took breaks of course; to bathe; to eat; to stretch her legs and to go to the bathroom thankfully. But she never did any of that alone, she always did it with "Jaune".

The Jaune I speak of was an old 3 foot tall rabbit that was falling apart at the seams and smelled like it could pass off as toxic waste. Why don't we wash it you ask? Because we can't. She won't let the damn thing out of her sight, all those breaks I told you about had some catch that involved the rabbit.

Bathing had to be done with her and the rabbit in the tub together. She would always make sure to "wash" it while she talked about her first day of daycare, a day that happened months ago. Were pretty sure it's begun to grow mold inside; anytime we tried to dry it off she would say that Jaune was a big boy and could dry himself.

Eating had to be done side by side or with her in the rabbits lap. She would only eat Jaunes favourite foods, making sure to "feed" him anytime she said he felt hungry. The stains on the rabbit have increase in volume and colour each day, making it look like a rabid animal.

Anytime she goes out to play with the rabbit, she always makes sure its velcroed to her sleeves. We actually suggested she do it; we didn't want another fiasco where it goes missing and she has a panic attack. But she took that quite seriously and ended up making sleeves out of velcro strips.

Bathroom breaks are the worst of them all. She always had trouble with the potty and usually needed help; but because I was too busy with my job and my wife already had to deal with the housework we left it to the children. That of course ended up falling into Jaune's hands which is now biting all of use in the ass. Violet won't let anybody but Jaune help her with the potty however our Jaune isn't here, so I assume you can see where the problem is.

Violet eventually realizes I'm in the room. "Oh! Hi daddy! Do you want to sit with us?"

"Sure sweetheart." I sit down in my usual spot.

"I hope you like it, it's Jaunes special blend."

I give a hollow chuckle. "Is that so? It must be good then."

"Of course! Jaunes just that awesome!" She beems. "I'm so glad I found him in the attic. I still find it silly that Jaune was playing hide and seek by himself!" She giggled to herself.

Yup, that's the alibi. When the incident went down she was confused and disheartened, always asking where Jaune was. It always hurt to tell her he was taken away because she would always deny it and made us out to be the bad guys. That was until she shouted that she found Jaune.

Everyone had rushed to the scene to embrace Jaune only to find that she was referring to a stuffed animal instead. It created a distance between her and the others, especially my wife. She was overjoyed and filled with hope, only to find it smashed in front of her by her own flesh and blood. She was angry at her for awhile, she refused to talk to her for making such a cruel joke; then she realized Violets condition and was filled with grief, her reason for ignoring her changed into something else, something much more troubling.

"Daddy are you angry?"

I noticed now that I was grimacing at my thoughts. "Sorry sweety, I just remembered I have stuff to do."

She tilted her head. "What kind of stuff?"

"Grown up stuff." My words made her cheeks inflate in anger.

"Foowee! Oh well, at least I have Jaune!"

"Yeah…"

I walked out of the room, making sure not to look back. I still have one more thing to do, one more thing to check up on. I make my way our Arc centerpiece, the room with Crocea Mors on the mantle. My son would have loved to wield it, the rest of the family knows this too. It's original purpose was to win fights and come out like a hero; now it's our monument for Jaune.

As I walk into our makeshift chapel, I feel an odd presence. In front of me was a person in a full body suit that appeared to be armored. The strands of metal that covered the suit were weaved perfectly together to maximize defense and movement, that much I could tell. The armor was black with what looked like dark purple outlines; judging by the figure I assume it was being worn by a male. His back was turned to me, but I could see he was tinkering with something.

Just before I was about to call out the stranger spoke first in a distorted voice. "I was wondering when you would arrive." He turned around around to face me.

His face was covered by an armored helm that looked impossible to see through which explained why he sounded like he was speaking through a mike. In his hands was Crocea Mors, my sons weapon.

"What is your business here?" I ask in a threatening tone.

"To say you have my sympathies, to greet an old friend and to return something to its rightful owner." He gestured towards the sword.

"So your a thief then. A thief who has the audacity to strike when a family is at its lowest."

"It's not stealing when the one who possesses it never owned it in the first place. If I remember correctly, this swords owner changes through the generations of the Arc family because of tradition. And right now this sword is has no owner." The man said.

I narrow my eyes and begin my prodding for information."Your quite knowledgeable about Arc tradition for a petty thief. Tell me, do I know you? Are you perhaps working for someone who knows me? A normal burglar wouldn't have information of our family secrets, an Arc only ever tells close friends that kinda stuff. So either you were once a close friend from the past, or your working for one."

"Mister Arc, me and you both know that can't be possible. After all, your friends should be 7-8 feet under. The fall of mount glenn was the cause if I remember correctly." Those words put me on edge.

"You're definitely not an everyday thief. How do you know that kind of classified information mister...?"

"Hehehe, don't even bother trying to find out my identity, it's been lost in time; instead you may call me Ditto. To answer your other question, It doesn't matter how I know especially since I won't be here for too much longer."

"Good to know, I won't stop you from leaving, in fact I'll help if you want. Just know that Crocea Mors won't be coming with you."

"Oh? And how pray tell are you going to stop me?" I smirk at that comment.

"You know my family tradition Ditto, don't you find it odd that I'm still a hunter even though I'm not the current owner of the sword? An Arc warrior who takes Crocea Mors as their own will be put under a sacred oath; an oath to fight so long as you wield it and to leave the fights to come to the future generations once you pass it on. Well I never used the sword in the first place, I'm still allowed to fight even though I'm a male Arc who became a hunter."

"Of course I knew that. Your semblance is powerful, you never needed to enlist the help of the sword because you could fight just fine on your own."

"That's right-"

"Don't lie to me Gris Arc. We both know the true reason you didn't use the sword was because your daddy said you were too weak to carry on the Arc tradition." He laughed at my dismay, leaning back more than he should have.

That caught my attention. 'Nobody besides my father and I know that. It was a private event that we kept to ourselves. How did this guy know!?'

"Awww, did I strike a nerve?"

"I don't know how you know these things but you'll find that confronted me while expecting me to be an easy target was a dumb move. That was years ago; now you face professional huntsman Gris Arc!" My aura burst to life, my semblance activated and ready to strike. But something was wrong.

"I'd love to see you fight without your aura." After he finished his sentence my aura shattered, taking my semblance with it.

"What the hell!?"

"Don't be too surprised. While you were trying to get me to talk, I absorbed your aura. Now you're as defenseless as a newborn babe."

"I can still fight!"

In the blink of an eye I was on the floor; pain erupted from my head. With how he was positioned above me I could tell I was clothes-lined.

"It's saddening really. Your so hostile towards me even though we want to give this sword to the same person, I hope Jaune doesn't get upset that you tried to stop him from fighting...again."

"...Jaune? You know Jaune!? How do you...he's been missing for a year, how could you possi-" I tried to get up but Ditto slammed his foot on my chest.

"Of course I know him; if I didn't, your house would be up in flames and villagers would be murdered. Besides; people usually know who they kidnapped." His foot slammed into my face moments later.

* * *

(Timeskip)

When I came too, I found myself in a hospital bed. To my right was my eldest daughter Rouge sleeping in a chair. I tried to get up but found I had multiple bandages and harnesses keeping my still. My struggling eventually woke Rouge up from her nap and in an instant she was to my side.

"Dad, stay down. Your in no condition to move right now." She said with a concerned voice.

"Bah! Putting medical chains on me won't stop me." I pout.

"Maybe not, but those shattered ribs will sure slow you down enough to bring you back." She said sternly.

"Shattered you say?" I recall the previous events. "Guess it makes sense, I was the victim of an armored lariat without aura. Man that burglar packs a punch."

"Hold up, what!? What do you mean burglar!?" She slammed her hands on my bed in distress.

"Didn't you see the end result, Crocea Mors is missing."

"No I didn't. I found you hanging over the edge of the town's public well like a drunkard; you had no pants or underwear on and had "insert coin here" written on your ass in marker."

I couldn't help but smirk at that. "Heh, at least Ditto has a sense of humor."

My daughter glared at me. "This is no laughing matter dad. You were humiliated, Crocea Mors is gone and a criminal who was strong enough to best you in combat is on the loose!"

"Calm down Rouge, it's not all bad."

"How can you be so positive!? Nothing good came from this at all!" She was starting to ruffle her hair, obviously at her wits end.

"Well I don't know about you but a lead on Jaune's location is a positive thing to me."

* * *

**Well, ain't this chapter long eh. There is something I have to point out before you guys do; the older Jaune is shorter than canon Jaune due to malnutrition. This causes older Jaune to mistake him as older because his own height is all he had to go off of. Now, I have a question for you fellas, nothing too major, just something to get the blood pumping. Who is your favorite RWBY character? I asked a similar question in my other fanfic but I want to ask once more. Because I know for a fact that different people read different fanfics and the other one may not be right for you guys.**

**That is all, Spiffy.**


	4. Chapter 3: Hitting up the town

**Well, well, well, look at this. You guys are really riling me up with these comments. I haven't had this large of a review blow up ever in my time of creating fanfics. The feeling it gives me is great but makes responding to the reviews a nightmare but who cares! The adrenaline in my body hyping me up sure doesn't care! I'll just need to make my responses shorter!**

**1, guest: Another member of the pink, white and brown I see. Who cares if she's overrated! The smol tart shall forever live in the hearts of many!**

**2, Ghostly(x4): I assure you that I will not use rape for this story, or at the very least go into detail about it. It may be a future OC's backstory or I might use it as a scenario where Jaune will save someone from being raped. Aside from that, no rape.**

**3, SaberPrototype15: I also like how Jaune is later in the story. When I re-watched RWBY, future Jaune made me respect(to an extent) old Jaune a bit more as a character. I also have a plan to deal with the bad aspects of the cast in my own way so look forward to that.**

**4, ****Alewar Warinot: Good to see you back buddy. Quite like the support as it helped me considerably as a writer. I'm also glad you like how the story is moving along and will try to make the story something you will look forward to. Hope you enjoy the chapter and that I pass the coming judgement day.**

**5, chendong2698: I also like the double Jaune idea. One is the teacher of the other and has that 'I know more than I should' vibe. The other is an overpowered bad-ass with a heart of gold. **

**6, HBgamer111: Good choice.**

**7, ****zzzsssdddkkkel(Love the name by the way.): Mwahaha! Yes I am truly evil. You'll all be reading chapters that aren't actually chapters! Fear my power!**

**Now, it's showtime!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Hitting up the town.

(Location: Hideout.)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon, Jaune is 13 years of age.)

(POV: Ditto.)

Jaune and I clashed swords in the center of our training area. I riposted his blade, redirecting it downward to give me an opening to elbow him in the jaw. After he staggered backwards I lunged at him and made a clean slash across his protected chest. The loud clang from my parallel Crocea Mors foreshadowed the sudden impact Jaune felt.

My student redirected his trajectory so that his feet hit the ceiling. A sudden push sent him spiraling at me with his new and improved Crocea Mors. I dodged the swing but had to block the bullet that was shot at me from Jaunes sword mid swing. His velocity made him slide across the floor like a saw blade.

I jumped over it of course but found my arm separated from my torso in mere seconds afterwards. The brat used the swords secondary guns recoil to bounce back and hit me from behind. I was proud that moment, but only that moment.

As soon as my arm dropped to the floor he screamed like a girl. He dropped his own blade and ran to my side in a panic. The idiot got a right hook for that one, leaving him sprawled out on the cold cave floor.

"Why!"

"Cause idiots need a good smack to keep them from repeating history. You know that I can easily heal this and yet you still ran to my aid."

"A hero always acts when someone's hurt."

"Then the hero is going to painfully die from obvious traps. I'm not saying helping others is bad, just that you need to be rational about it. It stops you from hesitating when you make a choice to save someone, stops you from choosing a person who can regenerate vs a person who can't."

The boy pondered my words for a moment, his hollow gaze appeared on his face as he processed the information. At least he's learning. He's definitely better than he was a year ago.

* * *

(Flashback.)

(Location: Hideout.)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon. Jaune is 11 years of age.)

(POV: Ditto.)

After I got back from...bullying my students family, I gave him a modified Crocea Mors to use for our practice bouts. He instantly took a liking to the sword and started training with it the first chance he got. I had to make new schedule to ensure Jaune got his sword practice in at specific times to develop muscle memory.

Some time passed and I found that his muscle memory training was very independent in nature and left me bored half the time. So I began amusing myself with the alias Ditto, who was now known as the brutal leader of a group called the reversal squad. We pillaged, we plundered and we left things asunder. Of course this group did have another use besides amusement, it allowed me to gather intel of the world and have a morally flexible group that wasn't held back by the laws of a kingdom.

After one of my adventures, as soon as I parted the wall and walked through, the kid asked me for a match. I agreed and began playing with the kid like any other day. He would charge at me with his new toy and I would kick him away. He tried to shoot me and got a rock to the face, you know, the usual.

But today was a bit different, the kid was adding spins to his attacks now and was getting more consistent with the use of his built in gun mid-battle. He was still a greenie, no doubt about that, but it was surprising for me when I got hit by him for the first time.

"Yeah! I got a hit in!" His cheers were stopped by the collision of my skull against his.

"Frick!" I walked over and kicked him.

"Darn it!" The kid was now doing it to piss me off. That had to be the reason, so I kicked him again.

"Why do you keep kicking me!?"

"Because you're pissing me off! Until you can start swearing like a big boy I'm going to continue to kick you!"

"But mom says-"

"Your mom ain't here now is she? Besides, if you want a girlfriend later in life then good luck with that. You'll find it hard to 'frick' a girl when you still sound like a child."

The beating continued, but I did eventually get him to stop using words like butt and poop. Even if he doesn't swear yet, I find that a huge accomplishment.

* * *

(Flashback end.)

"Well, even if the end of the fight needs work, you still did magnificently. A common thug would be down for the count with that blow and a huntsman/huntress would definitely be in pain. I'm pleased to inform you that you won kid, congrats." I gave him a golf clap.

Jaunes eyes became saucers. "Really, I can leave now!?"

"Pfft, hell no! That was the first grade of many that you passed kid. There's still loads of knowledge I gotta pass down and you're definitely not as strong as I wish you to be. You won the battle but-"

"I didn't win the war."

"Heh, correct. I fought you without aura the entire time, now your going to start fighting me with aura. After you beat me with my aura, you'll start fighting me while I use my semblance. Slowly it will progress until you become a champion of the world."

Jaunes face fell, I feel kinda bad now. He still has people waiting for him back at home and hasn't been outside in years. Sure I've given him studying materials to read and lights to stop him from developing poor eyesight but the fact still remains, and I'll be damned if I do as my father did to the letter.

Just need a reason to justify that a trip outside will be worth it. I don't want all the training to lose its effectiveness because I recklessly threw him out in a world filled with distractions. But maybe that's what he needs!

"That being said, you do have the basics down pat. All that needs to be improved is your strength and speed, which is easier than teaching advanced sword techniques. I wouldn't have any qualms about going outside so long as you keep on practicing. It would also give you the experience you need to put my lessons to good use." I outstretch my hand to my pupil. "The decision is yours Jaune, do you want to go on an adventure?"

His mood did a 180 after I asked him the question. He said yes of course and was more than willing to listen to my rules for the grand adventure.

"_**I never authorized this."**_ Chronos voiced.

'You aren't stopping me from doing it, unlike my exploits with my posse. Must mean this is OK to do, right?'

"_**Indeed. This plan of yours has very little when it comes to flaws."**_

'Thanks for the compliment. Figured there are some things that can't be taught in a dark cave.'

* * *

(Location: Outskirts of Vale.)

(POV: Jaune.)

This was super exciting for me, it's been so long since I've been outside. The are is so clean that it almost has taste, the grass and trees that I once took for granted seemed to pop with color. However, despite the beauty of my surroundings I couldn't help but be anxious.

Something seemed off to me, every bird that chirped put me on edge. I felt endangered with every step I took. I wasn't scared, this is mild compared to intimidation training with Ditto, but I was simply alert. Then a thought crossed my mind.

"Isn't this the out-lands?"

"As soon as we leave Jaune? I thought I already taught you about geography. It's disappointing, but I guess we should go back for extra lessons." Ditto turned around to walk back.

"Damn it that's not what I meant! Since this is the out-lands there should be a bunch more Grimm right?" When I looked to Ditto for my answer I found him in shock.

Ditto eventually went from shocked to impressed. "Correct. Very observant there Jaune, sorry for the misunderstanding. Though I am a bit surprised I'm also very proud. Today is the day my pupil finally swore, even if it wasn't the most vulgar swear."

"I...I guess you're right." I sheepishly scratch the back of my head.

"Truly a day to celebrate. Not only did my student pass the first course, he swore as well." Ditto chuckled. "Well I guess our destination is going to be more appropriate."

"You still didn't answer my question."

"I used a semblance of mine to keep the Grimm a certain distance away."

"Why-"

"Doesn't matter right now. What does matter is your disguise, can't have a kidnapped child show up randomly in Vale."

I stopped my questions and waited. He was right, this was more important. I could care less about Ditto's reasons for making a safer trip if it destroyed my chances to have some human/faunus contact.

Ditto didn't count, nobody would call a guy who has multiple semblances human. He would be a monster in the eyes of the populace. But only a monster could drastically change my look with a touch. In an instant my hair was styled differently, my clothes changed and my skin became a tanned color.

"There we are, much better. Now come along Jaune, the bar awaits." Ditto gestured for me to follow.

I was very excited to go to Vale, it's where you can see my dream school after all. Hope I can visit Beacon after we're done at the b-wait a second, bar!?

* * *

(Location: Juniors.)

I can't believe I'm at a bar, my mom was going to kill me! But it's even more concerning that I was allowed in, sure I look different but I still look young, right.

"Hey kid, aren't you a little young to be in a place like this?" The bartender asked.

Before I could say anything, Ditto piped up. "He has aura and sword training, he's been in the out-lands with me fighting the good fight. You can't kick him out for his age because unlike those signal students he fights the Grimm on their home turf. Hunter law states that-"

The bartender grunts. "Yeah, yeah; those who may not see tomorrow should be able to drink like it. Even if the law allows young huntsman/huntresses to have the privileges of an adult, it still doesn't sit well with me."

"No need to worry, the boy won't be drinking alcohol. This is just the best place to celebrate my pupil's recent victory. He'll be having the orange soda and I'll have the hardest whisky you have on your shelf." Dittos words make the bartender nod before he went to get our drinks.

"Sooo...this place is pretty crowded. Feels a tad odd to be around so many people." The bartender brought our drinks and placed them in front of us.

"You'll get used to it kid. Think of it as training for your social skills." We both take a sip from our drink, sighing as the flavor filled both our throats.

I looked around at our scenery; the bar had a dance floor, various booths and a great deal of attractive women. My eye was caught by a girl in a white dress who had nice looking legs. I don't know if it was my lack of contract with the outside world or puberty but one thing was clear, I was blushing like crazy. A fact that didn't go unnoticed by Ditto.

"To think our first lesson in the outside world would appear so soon. Jaune, listen up." Ditto drew my attention to himself, much to my dismay. "It's painfully obvious that you are feeling quite attracted to the ladies. So now is the perfect time to teach you a new kind of combat, seduction."

I looked at him quizzingly. "Seduction?"

"Yup. You see in the outside world, seduction is a tool stronger than both the sword and the pen. A male can seduce a woman to get their way with her and the woman can do the the same to the man. Tonight I'm going to teach you some things about the art of seduction."

I started to flail my arms in a panic. "What!? I-I don't think I'm ready for that at all! There's no way I can come close to seducing anyone!"

"Damn right you won't. I'm not going to teach you how seduce people, but to resist their seduction. It's like how people train offence and defense; you train the defense first so that you can use offence without any worry about defending yourself. The last thing I want is for you to flirt with a girl only to have it backfire. This also has combat uses, a person's alur can dull the senses and reaction time of an opponent."

"O-OK but how will I be taught? Is there a training manual or-" Ditto giggles at my question and calls over a faunus waitress.

He hands her 5000 lien. "One cherry picking course for the lad beside me please."

The girl happily nods and pulls me away to a back room. The room was furnished with a red bed, a black dresser and a table with various bottles on it. When I turned back to the faunus I found her in revealing clothes, which instantly got a reaction out of me.

"Wha…" My jaw dropped.

"I don't usually handle virgins but you were so cute that I couldn't resist. Besides, from the look of it you won't disappoint even with your lack of experience." She gave me a sexy smirk.

Though I had no idea what was going on in the beginning I caught on fairly quick. I was more than happy to embrace the faunus and from her screams, she was happy too. It truly made my day to lose my V-card. Eventually I left the room and made my way back to Ditto, a stupid grin present on my face.

Ditto returned my grin with a shit eating one. "So how was that brat? I guess I should say bastard now that you're a man eh?"

"Yeah, it was amazing. I've never felt so good in my life!" I beamed.

"Good to know that your ready for round two." Ditto gets up and walks towards the DJ stand.

He chats with the DJ and the bartender I say before and seems to come to some sort of agreement. Ditto was handed a mike, which he tapped to get everyone's attention.

"Hello everybody, especially the ladies, I have an announcement to make. Today I have seen my student grow from a boy to a man, a truly joyous occurrence. Now it's time to share that joy with you guys." Ditto pulls out a wad of money from his back pocket. "10000 lien for every female worker who is able to 'satisfy' my student and 10000 lien for every male worker who gives him a contact. As for the pedestrians, you will all receive 5000 lien for just being here."

Everyone started chatting with one another and began looking around for, I assume, me. I could feel that I was in danger, the many girls that I was ogling before now filled me with terror instead of arousal.

Ditto saw my discomfort and smiled. "What are you waiting for you guys? Your golden goose is over there." He pointed to me.

All of their heads snapped to my direction, my cover was completely blown thanks to the lack of people at the bar. Dozens of eyes gazed at me as I slowly began to make my exit. However I was surrounded by seven women in a few seconds and was slowly taken away to the back room again.

"Noooooo!"

* * *

(POV: Ditto.)

I laughed at the kids dismay, the poor kid was being taken to a heaven worse than hell. Everyone was more than willing to do what I asked for 10000 lien, it made the club far more welcoming and vibrant.

Though my reasons were sound, it was annoying to deal with the aftermath. After giving money out willy nilly like I did, I also became a center of attention. Many girls were sucking up to me and many men tried to threaten me. Of course I dealt with them easily, it was just annoying to do so without violence.

"Quite the stunt you did there." Junior said to me.

"Well the boy needs some sort of resistance to the womanly touch. It's also good for the kid to get some connections, no matter how suspicious."

Junior nods. "That's wise I suppose. Just leave the twins out of it, they already deal with questionable people with weapons, I don't want them to start using prostitution as a method as well."

"Never crossed my mind. Just preparing him for a war that's to come."

Junior looks at me funny. "War? I've heard nothing about a war in Vale, you sure you aren't smoking anything?"

"You wouldn't hear about it, it's on a global scale after all. Vale has yet to be affected but the plans are being made." I explain.

"How do I know you aren't pulling information outta your ass." He questions.

"You don't, but in the end information is information whether or not it's true. It's not like I'm asking you for anything in return, the info is useless for business purposes because nobody is going to ask about a war that hasn't happened yet, it holds no worth. This is mainly for you and those close to you to keep to yourselves."

"Say I believe you and this war does happen. Do you have an idea when the war is going to begin?"

"Within 5 years."

"Not a lot of time, but I guess that just means I'll get proof sooner." He smiles with appreciation.

"Your right about that." Junior chuckled and walked off.

Junior was always a fellow who was swayed by money. In my world he was a traitorous club owner who helped fellow rebels like Salem's inquisition. He'll probably try to help the rebels here as well but could probably be swayed with money and a show of power.

"Well, well, well mister moneybags. What kinda business were you doing with Junior? Never seen him smile like that unless he wins big." A cocky voice asked.

"No business, just making friends." I respond.

The man sits beside me. "Nah, can't be. A man with your riches comes into a bar like this, gives money to everyone and then doesn't try to make some sort of business scheme? Now I know you're lying."

"Friends are always good to have, especially for a blooming thief like yourself. So tell me Roman, is there any reason your talking to me aside from taking my wallet filled with dead cards?" The man in white scoffs and throws the wallet on the ground.

This man was Roman. A notorious thief who likes the thrill of a good heist. In my world he was akin to robin hood, if robin hood really liked stealing things. In this world he's probably far more greedy but should still be affected my foreknowledge.

Roman recomposes himself. "Well old man, I'm just trying to understand why a guy like you is in a place like this. Shouldn't you be at 5-star restaurant in Atlas instead of an out of the way club like this?"

"You would think that but as I said in my announcement, this isn't about me. I'm trying to get my pupil some connections in the underworld, which are far more useful than connections on the straight and narrow." Roman nodded at this, seeing my point. "Now here's a question for you; shouldn't Neo be with you?"

Roman's tone became hostile with those words. "And how do you know her? It's no surprise that you know Roman Torchwick, master thief of Vale. Neo however has always been kept out of the spotlight, Junior doesn't even know about her existence, so how do you?" Roman lifted his cane to my head.

Without hesitation I lied my way out of trouble. "When someone's asked to watch over a dying mother's child, one tends to keep tabs on said child." This made Roman look at me strangely but also pacified him him a tad bit.

"You knew her as a child?" Roman raised a brow.

"Try as a baby. I couldn't be there for her all the time and mostly stayed in the shadows to observe, she probably won't know me." I put my chin in my hand and star playing with my glass.

Roman gives me a glare. "Prove it. Whats her mothers name?"

Easy answer. "Vanilla."

"...lucky guess." Roman spun his cane and lost his aggression.

I took a swig from my drink and rested it in front of me. "So how's the squirt doing? Haven't seen her since you took her in."

"Well..right now she's trying to get 10000 lien." Roman's words made me choke on my drink a bit.

A shiver went down my back. "Poor kid, I'll have to apologize when he gets out."

"Yeah well, money is tight right now. Hard to search for information without money after all." Roman began sulking. "Trying to find Neo's dad, she wants to stab him up real good when we find him. Though that's better said than done, he's like a ghost. He's either dead, missing or-"

"High up on food chain. I read you loud and clear, it's hard to do with minuscule amounts of money. So here's a suggestion from an old fool, 50000 lien is better then 10000. Should you make a personal connection with my pupil, I'll give you four times what every other guy is getting."

"...what's the catch, there's always a catch."

"You make a connection to me as well. I'd be honored to have close ties with the 'master thief of Vale' and would love to see him go from master to legend. What do you say?" I extend my hand to Roman.

He pondered for a bit but eventually accepted. "Deal."

"Great. Now first order of business, I want to make a deal."

"Already!?"

"Yes. I want you to do something for me, something that needs to be done in a few years. I won't ask you to do for free, in fact you'll find my payment to be more than enough for the task I'm going to give you." I persuade.

"What's the payment?"

I stand up from my chair. "Spumoni."

"Excuse me?"

"That's his name, Spumoni. He's Neo's father. He lives in Vacuo and is the head honcho of some sort of mafia. He-" I reiterate.

"Shut up!" Roman puts his hand on his temples. "*geez, me and my honor as a thief* you would be overpaying for my services if you keep talking. So keep your verbal gold to yourself and tell me what you want."

"I'll tell you through a text a bit later, gotta check on my disciple real quick."

"Got it."

"Oh, before I go. Roman."

"Yeah?"

"Reds you're unlucky color."

* * *

**Hope the chapter was as good for you guys as it was for me. Before I end the chapter, I do want to point out a few things about the story before the next upload. **

**For those worried about the story's pacing fret not, I'm merely leaving pieces of the story untold so that later on I can explain it with a flashback. **

**Ghostly, I know we talked about rape but I personally think this chapter is alright in that aspect. Sure Jaune didn't consent at first but he did willingly lose his V-card to the first girl. The rest of the girls were more of a comical thing, where it wasn't against it because he hated it but because he didn't want to die of exhaustion.**

**Finally, those worried about me bringing Roman into the fold should know that he will play a big part in the story later. Also, if you don't like the backstories I'm giving RWBY owned characters or their personalities, well...the other dimension excuse will have to do. I promise that I won't do it too much, just want to give characters whose backstories are unknown a little more flare. **

**Personalities on the other hand are something that I'm not going to actively change as I want the RWBY cast to act relatively the same as they do normally. But I'm not perfect and may mess something up, especially with side characters, but I'll try my best to keep things the same. That doesn't include developments caused by the new Jaune though.**

**This is Spiffy signing off, peace!**


	5. Chapter 4: Just deserts

**Who is ready for longest chapter for a story I have ever created? I wasn't (:)). But pajesus this is long, took me quite a bit to write up too. It is over 7000 words without the beginning or end part. But that doesn't matter, the chapter is done and I'm not shortening it. Think of it as a bonus of sorts. Now for the reviews.**

**First up, adislt: To answer your question; yes and no, let me explain. The original idea(still the basic idea.) was to have children from different futures appear. Their parents would be Jaune and another RWBY character, this includes the males. Now this doesn't mean that this Jaune will get romantically involved with them; it just means that in some parallel future, Jaune was paired with that person. I'm not a homophobe, I just personally see Jaune as a straight guy.**

**Second in line, Alewar Warinot: How many indeed. The poor guy was captured and…'tortured'? (Eros, help me out here.) [The kid got FUCKED!] (Thanks.) But you never know; maybe they used protection, maybe he was turned into a slave, maybe he was forced to play uno, in the end we'll never truly know. But at least the kid won't be staring at a girls chest anytime soon.**

**Thirdly, Ghostly(heh, rhyme!): When a person works in a club that deals with pleasurable activities, they become more compliant with following orders that involve their profession, especially when it pays better. You see, I looked up the average prostitutes hourly rates to find it's around 50-2000 dollars. Since I'm treating lien like american currency(Even though it's based on yen.), 10000 lien doesn't seem so small. I'm not making fun of you, nor am I mad, just wanted to put it into perspective. But you are right about one thing, the tactical mindset is one of the key reasons for this.**

**Fourthly, Guest: Yes, yessss. Someone who understands, everyone of my friends think I'm weird for liking her. But you have good taste, you have tasted the Neapolitan kool-aid and have joined the brown, white and pink!**

**Fifthly, thereichfulgerman: Indeed.**

**Sixthly, Zebube: You know what pal, don't feel too bad. I'll admit, it was really hard for me to get into RWBY at first. I was just put off by the animation and acting during season 1-2. I got into it through fanfictions, oddly enough. It was only after season 3 came around that I started to watch the show.**

**Well, enough talk. Enjoy your 7978 word chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Just deserts.

(Location: Vacuo coffee shop.)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon, Jaunes is 15 years of age.)

(POV: Jaune.)

Ditto and I were currently sitting at a table outside of a lovely coffee shop. Our reason for this wasn't to relax or plot devious operations. It was to observe, observe the many people that surrounded us. The table had a perfect view of the many kinds of establishments and people who made up our world.

Vacuo was always famous for its peoples variety of classes. A quarter were rich, a quarter were poor, a quarter were in between and a quarter were so criminalized that it didn't matter. This of course sprouted many establishments of the same kind for the different classes.

Today we were 'pub watching'. Our position allowed us to see all four of the major bars and clubs, each with colorful people to doing business inside them. I would go into detail but Ditto seemed to have that under control.

"That brothel over there is where your common criminals and senseless shitbags congregate." Ditto pointed out.

I gave him a blank glance. "It says it's a barber shop."

"Bah! That's what they want you to think." He scoffs and takes a sip of his glass of water he spiked. "That over there is where the drama queens and thieves go. Even though the store hands out donations, it isn't enough to appease the poor."

"They take more than their given. It's human nature to resort to any means in order to obtain what isn't theirs." I resight.

Ditto smirked at my words. "I taught you well. That store over there is a bar, plain and simple. The good and the bad get drinks while spouting obscenities and information. Info is good for any side and any profession."

I resight once more. "Knowledge can end a fight before it even starts right?"

"Yep. Now that place over there is where the rich snot nosed brats who expect all there problems to go away with money!...sorry, higher class people, go. You'll find the easily corrupt in these places so be sure you prepare for potential back-stabs. Especially from-" I cut Ditto off during another one of his rage filled ramblings.

"Especially from Schnees, yeah I get it already, you hate Schnees. Jeez, what did they do to you anyways?" I asked.

"They acted like Schnees!" Ditto's outburst drew unwanted attention to us.

After everything calmed down, some desserts were placed in front of us. 'Lovely treats for a job well done' is what Ditto would say. When we got to Vacuo and he started doing this it caught me off guard, thought he poisoned the cookies. But a luck would have it that couldn't be further from the truth.

I've been pondering a ton of things lately. Before we took our journey I thought Ditto was a tyrannical coach who enjoyed my suffering. But as the training seemed to get easier and my mind matured, things started to look different when I thought back on things. Previous regimens seemed pitiful, words I took literally had hidden meanings and the smiles he gave as I complained went from cruel to caring. It confused me.

"Hey Ditto?"

"Yes Jaune?"

"Why are we observing those people instead of conversing with them?"

"Easy question. When you meet a person, the first thing you judge them by is their appearance. This is bad in most cases but does help people get a glimpse of what the person is like. People tell lies, their body language speaks the truth. It also helps you read your opponent during battle."

"I expected as much, everything you teach me can be used in combat. Smooth talk, outfit choices, how to bend a spoon. Hell, you taught me how to kill someone with a coin flip."

"The aim is the important part." Ditto nodded with a grin. "So that all you have to say, or is that look on your face foreshadowing a bowel movement?"

"Yeah I do. Why do you do the things you do? I'm trying to understand how you operate but every-time I think I got the answer you pull my foundation down again."

"What brought this on? Could it be that fateful night? The night you embraced over a dozen women?"

"Don't bring that up please. I still feel exhausted just thinking about it. It really didn't help that you kept kicked me back into the room to do it again."

"How was that by the way? I think I got them to do it like 3-4 times."

"Doesn't matter to me. Because of that stunt I can't look at a girl the same way anymore. I mean I can get it up but there is no arousal whatsoever when I look at a woman and when they wear revealing clothes it gives me a headache."

"Good, you'll definitely deal with people who'll try to get into your pants. That's why it's important to have complete control over your libido. It's a dead giveaway when a man's 'little brother' stands at attention."

"You made yourself clear when you threw me to the wolves so shut up about it. I have other important questions to ask."

"Well, lay them on me."

"Throughout the entirety of my training I have not fought a single Grimm. You never gave me a straight answer when I asked you before and I feel like I should get an answer."

"Another simple question. Tell me Jaune, what's sounds scarier to you; a horde of idiotic pitch black beasts who are able to take down small civilizations with ease or a single grizzled old man who could destroy kingdoms with half-assed effort?"

"The man..."

"Damn straight! You'll see what I mean when you fight the Grimm for the first time. They look deadly, but looks aren't everything. Anybody becomes scary when they push people into corners, read them like single page pamphlets and show them how pointless struggling is in the end. I am far more terrifying than any Grimm, and once I'm done you'll be the same."

"Alright, I think I understand. Next question; why did you choose to move to Vacuo?"

"Similar reason for the Grimm question. Vacuo's slogan is 'if you can live here, you can live anywhere'. That fun line is the foundation for your training; if you can beat me, you can beat the Grimm. By doing extreme exercises, average exercises begin to lose their impact. When something bad happens, you can stand tall and say that you've been through worse."

"Changes my perspective about situations, makes me calmer in situations that cause panic. I can even use what I learned from dangerous situations during bad situations."

Ditto gave me an odd look before he smiled with pride. "I know for a fact I didn't teach you that. Your already learning on your own."

"I did have a great and caring teacher." I smiled back.

His smile changed to that of a sadists. "Next training session will make you eat those words."

We both shared a laugh and finished our meals. Ditto then sent me to home base while he prepared for a mission. However I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched.

* * *

(Location: Backstreets of Vacuo.)

(POV: Ditto.)

This entire job was troubling. I had taken a job from the mission board for hunters in order to secure more funds. It was for my pupil, for when he finally kicked my ass and left me to rot in some hole somewhere. Ahhh, that will be one hell of a day.

"Stop where you-Gah!" A quick slice decapitated the guard.

Though these thoughts kept me going, something was painfully obvious. This mission was supposed to be for high rank hunters and yet I could see a single huntsman-in-training complete this without an issue.

Three more thugs showed up. "Die you son of a-Hurk!" I stabbed my blade through the middle thug and twisted the blade so it stuck out the sides. Then I flipped over the thug on my left and kicked him into the handle, the force pushed all the thugs together to form a shish kebab.

I mean these guys don't have aura, that fact alone would make this at most a C-rank mission. But considering these mobs aren't even hardened criminals, I could say that this mission should be about E-rank in difficulty.

A fat man peeked out of a reinforced door at the end of the hallway. "What's taking so long-" My foot kicked the door into the man's skull, crushing his head like a grape.

Yes, no doubt in my mind, something bigger is going on here. To many things are pointing towards this job having more to it than meets the eye. All of it had to be orchestrated by the creator of the mission, using the anonymous mission making system.

I walked through the door, a servant walked towards me with ignorance. "Here's your coffee si-" I bashed her head with my shield, knocking her out. I was about to finish her off but realized she was a slave instead of a servant.

There are many reasons for why this quest was put up. To get high ranking hunters alone for a chat, kidnap the cocky hunters for experiments, the list goes on and on.

A grown woman walked through a secret passage with a clipboard in hand. "We need to talk Do-" I threw my sword and shield at her. The sword pierced her body and was then pushed further by the shield that followed behind.

Whatever the case may be didn't matter. It pushed me onward through the sub-par gang Hideout. A savage smile grew as my excitement did. I walked down the stairs of the secret hallway, finding myself in a rather large parking lot.

There was a man packing up his stuff in a hurry, trying to get everything ready for departure. He saw me and panicked, quickly getting into the exotic vehicle. Seconds later he tried running me over, newfound confidence on his face. To bad he didn't wear a seat-belt; as soon as his car hit me he was sent flying out the front window.

The idiot didn't realize I had a large aura pool and a semblance that halved the effect of impacts I take. Now he was paying for it, two broken legs and a torso similar to cheese after it meets a cheese grater. As I walked closer, the screams of pain he belted out became screams of fear.

"Pl-please, spare my life! I have the lien! Just name your price!" The pathetic man begged.

I looked at him with disappointment. "I can't stand to look at such pitiable people. But you needn't worry, I'm not here to kill you."

"R-really?" He gave me a hopeful look.

"Well I was at first. But after I realized the truth behind this quest, I decided to leave it be. My reason for being here was to kill you in the beginning, but now it's to deal with the little mouse who likes to play hide and seek." I threw my shield to my right.

The shield was parried mid flight, rebounding off pillars and walls before it hit the pitiable man behind me. The impact knocked him out and sent my shield nicely towards my left arm. After securing my shield I looked at my target. She was a blonde with striking blue eyes and an odd obsession with the color orange. Boy, did she look pissed.

I gave her a cheeky smile. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this lovely meeting?"

Her glare intensified. "I'm going to burn you from what you did." Her eerily calm voice gave off a ton of bloodlust.

'What I did?' Usually when I do things that warrant this much hate I kill all who are involved, maybe she survived with a semblance? She does seem familiar to my sister Saffron, but I vividly remember that she didn't fight. Yeah, this girl can't be Saffron, she was armed to the teeth for fuck sakes. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"You mean you don't remember? The family you destroyed? The family you tormented and taunted for years? The family who had their brother kidnapped!?" She girls voice was shaking but still firm.

'Well I'll be damned.' Though she couldn't see it through my body-armor, I was grinning ear to ear. "Oh, I see now. Your-"

"I'm Saffron Arc!" Saffron Arc the oblivious; the sister who simply sat back and ignored me while I was brutally beaten; the sister who ran away once I turned on the family; the sister who vowed to never pick up a sword and let others do the fighting. She stood before me in armor similar to my own, great-sword in hand, battle stance taken, ready to challenge me. "And I'm going to run you through!"

* * *

(Location: Gang hideout basement.)

(POV: Saffron.)

I'm Saffron Arc. Daughter of Gris and Prisme Arc. Sibling of seven siblings, or at least what's left of the siblings. 5 years ago I was your everyday girl who liked to hang out with her friends. Unlike the other Arc's, I always wanted to live a normal life; while by siblings chased after my mom and dad's legacy I wished to leave it behind. Sure I was taught basic stuff for self defense but in the end the hunter life was not for me.

I was quite obsessed with this way of thinking, always strived for a normal lifestyle even though I lived in a house with two ranound hunter parents. It was difficult to live the life I wanted because I apparently had talent as a huntress, which made my mother constantly pester me to join an academy. It was even harder when my little bro Jaune used his puppy dog eyes on me.

He wanted to be a hero more than anyone in the family. So when he showed no talent for it and mother suggested that he try to do something else he came crying to his favorite big sis, me. When he did this I was actually quite angry with him, he was given the chance to live a normal life without mom and dad on his back. Instead he chose to keep reaching for the stars, bringing me down with him.

Now I'm not saying I hated Jaune for it. I just wished I didn't have to compromise my dream for his. At least that's what I originally thought; everything sentient makes mistakes, I'm no different. My biggest mistake was my wish to live a normal life.

If I was a huntress then I would be prepared for any mishap, have the strength to defend, the strength to save. If I accepted the huntress life then maybe Jaune would still be at home in his onesie. But I just had to cling to the notion of a normal life. My wish to be normal got my bro kidnapped.

Now I've changed, accepted the legacy my parents left me. This way I could fight, I could take back my brother, wherever he is. My new goal to find my brother lead me to Atlas academy so I could become a huntress, join the military, and use their advanced database to track down my brothers kidnapper.

The years passed and my second year began. I was the team leader of team SLVR(silver) and was very popular among my peers as a 'cool beauty'. My teammates thought the same thing until a month passed and realized that my study and training habits were unhealthy. They tried to get me to take breaks, join them on vacations, connect with me. In the end it wasn't any good, though our team was the best in our class we were further apart than when we started.

It wasn't until my fourth year started that dad was able to contact me. He had found out my bro's kidnapper was going to be in Vacuo through an informant of his. When I found out I tried to leave instantly but because of Atlas's strict school rules I wasn't allowed to leave until the school year ended.

But as luck would have it, there was a school trip coming up that took students to Vacuo. I signed up as fast as I could, surprising my teammates. They probably thought it was weird I was joining a trip I called a waste of time before. Though they were more relieved than anything, said that it was great to see me relax for once in my life.

When I got to Vacuo, I used the information I received from my dad to track him down. I found out that he was actually a huntsman who did high ranked quests. This knowledge made me create the plan I was currently executing. I made a quest that would act as bait for my sting operation, after he took the quest and dealt with the idiot run drug cartel, I would take him down and force him to tell me Jaunes location.

I waited in my hiding spot, witnessing the actual leader of the gang get his stuff together to make his escape. This went on until a man matching the description my dad gave me appeared. His armor was intimidating and it looked impossible to see through the mask.

He confronted the scurrying leader, which made the crime boss panic and try to run him over. I was expecting a lot of things from the scenario but not what actually happened. When the car hit the huntsman, I expected him to go flying or skid backwards. I wasn't expecting him remain completely still as the car hit him, he was like a wall, the speed sent the gang leader flying out of the car.

The spoke with each other, the boss begged the huntsman to let him go. But the huntsman showed mercy and threw his shield in my direction. I bat the shield away with my sword and left my position, less I get hit by the wild trajectory of the shield. The huntsman caught the shield like it was nothing. I walked forward, a scowl present on my face.

He tilted his head and spoke in a distorted voice. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this lovely meeting?"

My anger peaked. Did he not remember!? That didn't matter now, all that mattered was his future broken form. "I'm going to burn you from what you did."

He tilted his head like I was stupid. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

I snapped then and there. "You mean you don't remember? The family you destroyed? The family you tormented and taunted for years? The family who had their brother kidnapped!?"

His body language seemed to show he finally remembered his crime. "Oh, I see now. Your-"

I cut him off. "I'm Saffron Arc!" I pointed my great-sword towards him.

"And I'm going to run you through!"

There was silence in the parking lot. Then it was broken by a distorted snort followed by a chuckle. The huntsman's torso slumped over and began twitching because of his growing laughter. Eventually the room was filled with his haunting, uncontrollable giggles.

"Man this is hilarious! Saffron Arc of all people wants to kill me! Hahaha!" He held his chest again to contain his growing amusement.

I grit my teeth. "You won't be laughing once your arms are chopped off!" My threat fell on deaf ears though.

"I'd like to see you try sweetheart. Even if you did plan to ambush me with your posse, your chances of victory are slim."

"Posse?" His words confused me. I planned to fight him alone, I didn't bring anyone with me to help, this matter was personal after all.

"You mean your team's not in on your plan? Some teammate you are." The huntsman lectured.

I looked around and saw space distort, revealing the rest of team SLVR. They all awkwardly stood there like children who were caught doing something bad.

"What are you doing here!?" I shouted with worry.

"W-well you were acting strange throughout this whole trip. We thought something was up with you and did our own investigation." My team member Lawn Shaden defended their case.

Lawn had emerald eyes and brown hair with random green strands here and there. Though he had a heart of gold it didn't stop him from being nosy. It was definitely his semblance that hid them. He called it 'perfect predator' and it allowed him to camouflage his presence by changing his surroundings.

"You kept leaving in the middle of the night and even went to shady establishments for reasons we don't know. I do have a feeling that it has something to do with him though." Lawn gestured towards the huntsman.

"Perfect observation." The armored man clapped.

"Rrrrr! Who are you fiend!? What did you do to our fearless leader to make her so upset!?" Elleda Ripple blurted out. "If you hurt her, then your going to be in a world of pain villain!"

Elleda was the more...colorful person of our group. She liked to wear a mage hat that covered her black hair. Her partner was Lawn and believed that she was a wizard. When we first met, she believed I was a great hero from old and asked me if she could be my retainer. When I said no, she used her semblance to prove her worth. The semblance allowed her to store things and pull them out again, keeping any momentum they may have had previously.

"Awww, how sweet." The huntsman said. "But I'm afraid I can't tell you that. That's for dear Saffron to tell, it would be rude if I said something so...personal."

"In a way he's correct. If we want our answers, we should get it from a trusted source." Vev Colstierior, my partner, stated. His words made Lawn and Elleda turn towards me.

Vev was my partner by chance. Glasses upon her nose as her black ponytail with yellow highlights flowed down her shoulder. She was an intellectual who scored second on each yearly Atlas test that we took. Her semblance allows her to literally make fiction reality; any word she writes can be transformed into what the word is. If the word is a verb, then is will force those actions upon a selected object.

"I-I...tha-at." I had to collect myself. Apparently my stoic mask I wore was weaker than I thought, never thought I would need to tell others.

Vev took my stutter as a hint to stop pressing for answers. "If you don't want to talk about it then don't, we won't force you. He is an enemy who our leader believe needs to be taken down, that is all we need to know." Vev's words made them pull out their weapons.

I was baffled. "Why are you guys doing this?"

My team smiled. "Because you obviously need help dumb-dumb. Just because we weren't close doesn't mean we don't think of you as a friend." Elleda stated.

"Yeah. We've been through thick and thin together. If you think this guy needs to be brought to his knees then I'll trust your judgement, it hasn't let me down yet." Lawn smiled at me to show his trust.

"Lawn is right. You are one of the smartest people I know, you would never accuse someone of anything unless you were absolutely sure. You also wouldn't attack someone unless they deserved it. We are similar in that regard. Though it saddens me you still won't tell us your reasons, I have enough evidence to back up my trust in you." Vev adds.

I looked down in shame. "You guys…no, you all deserve to know. He's the reason I became a huntress. 5 years ago that man kidnapped my brother, then proceed to hold that fact over our heads for years. Every week we were given a letter about our faults and how he had Jaune."

"Wait, he's still giving you those letters? Man, the guy really knows how follow orders." The huntsman's voice seemed impressed.

"What the hell, how cruel can a person be? Who the hell do you think you are!? I may have been raised on a farm, but I know for a fact you don't do stuff like that to a girl, ever!" Lawn shouted in rage, earning a chuckle from the huntsman.

"Who am I? What a simple question, I only have one name and am only going to say it once so write it down. My name is Ditto, no middle or last name needed." His words echoed through the open area.

His name was Ditto? Finally I could put a name to a face, even if the name was an alias. I didn't give him the satisfaction of a reaction, nor did Vev or Lawn, but I did see a look of fright cross Elleda's face.

"He's the dragon slayer…" She mumbled out.

"Dragon slayer?" I asked.

"Not an accurate title. It doesn't take much to kill a Wyvern, all you gotta do is climb into it's eye socket." Ditto brushed off the title. "Besides, a title isn't something you should be worried about right now. Instead you should focus on the fight ahead, it'll take all you've got to make it out alive."

"Maybe you can't count, there are four of us and one of you, your outnumbered." I pointed out.

Ditto chuckled at this. "That's why I love tactics; my favorite ones 'divide and conquer'."

As those words left his lips, smoke began to seep out of the cracks in his armor. He wheezed as if he took a puff of a cigarette, the smoke that surrounded him suddenly shot out and filled the garage to the brim.

We couldn't see anything, I had to listen to the pained shouts and screams of my teammates before I too was struck by an unseeable force. My struggle was pointless, I swung randomly a few times but it was useless. 'If only I had a semblance.' was the last thought I had before I fell unconscious.

* * *

(Location: Dittos new home.)

(POV: Jaune.)

I was doing some light training today. I lifted two dumbbells infused with gravity dust as I did squats. The reason for this is because I was thinking about the life I've been living recently. It began with my overprotective siblings, then my kidnapping.

My life then changed from one of leisure and a hope for something greater to a life of something greater with a hope for leisure.

But while that seems bad, I was able to adapt to my new lifestyle. It was easy due to the lack of mental strain I felt(Aside from the schoolbooks.). My training was hard and would put a man without a walking, talking hospital close by 6-feet under. But Ditto always knew when to stop, when it became too much for me.

He didn't force his ideals on me, brainwash me or shatter my dreams. Instead he would laugh in my face and say his ideals were his opinion; say I need to think for myself; or tell me to get the hell up to get closer to my dreams.

When it came down to it, Ditto was oddly nice. He even said I could go back home to my family for a visit...yeah, visit. I've always dreamed about going back to my family, hold them in my arms as I told them I was alright. It drove me forward, made me determined to best Ditto. But as the years went by I began to ponder to myself.

Do they actually miss me? What would I even say to them? Could I actually become a hero? These thoughts made me hesitant to leave when Ditto said I could. What stopped me completely was the promise Ditto and I made all those years ago.

If I wanted to leave then I had to actually beat him in combat. Leaving now would feel like cheating, it would make all the work I put into Dittos potential defeat pointless. So I decided to stay just a bit longer.

But that doesn't mean I won't see my family again. When I finally come home, I'll be able to hold my head high. To show my worth as a hero. 'So just wait a little longer guys.'

I fished up my twentieth rep and laid the dumbbell gently on the ground, I already made enough holes in the floor as it is. Before I was able to go to the kitchen there was a knock at the door. Ditto never knocked so it couldn't be him, it put me on edge. What startled me further was the voice behind the door.

"Son, can I come in please?" My father asked.

I was frozen still. 'Dad's here!?'

"I just want to talk, it's been 5 long years since we talked. I give you my word as an Arc that I won't do anything else while in this house. So could you find it in your heart to give this old man a face to face chat?" My father asked.

Well...an Arc never goes back on their word. I made my way to the door and opened it all the way. There he was, my father Gris Arc. His beard and going gray from old age but still held the prominent blonde all Arcs have. The armor he always wore during his adventures was present on his body.

He smiled at me. "Good to see you Jaune. My have you grown."

I smiled back. "Good to see you too dad. Or is it still huntsman of legend?"

"Is that snark I hear. Well isn't this a surprise, didn't think you had it in you." Dad pointed out.

"People change." I say.

"That they do."

Dad held his arms out for a hug, I followed suit. But instead of embracing each other we clasped our hands together for a handshake. My dad's eyes showed pride, the handshake showed how much I grew.

* * *

(Timeskip.)

My father was howling with laughter. "Then what happened?"

I continued my story. "I ran out of the room but before I got to the door the girls caught me. I tried to call for help but Ditto put his boot on my face and pushed me back into the room. The last words I heard of out of him was 'Can't stop now, it's the bonus round.'"

"Ha, I gotta take Ditto out for a few drinks." Dad said.

"Honestly I thought you would be more against the contents of the story."

"Well sure, the age is a bit concerning but I was no better. I was only a year older than you when I talked a big game and drank till I found myself with a random woman the next day."

"Hope mom doesn't find out."

"Jaune, that woman was your mother. She was quite alright with the situation and went so far as to sign a marriage certificate within a week of that day. She was as clingy then as she is now."

"Yeah, she is rather possessive. If she came here instead of you I would already be at home and strapped to a bed to ensure I don't leave. Speaking of, why haven't you attempted that?"

"A few reasons. Firstly you look in great shape, no harm anywhere, I dare say your in better shape then you have been in your life. Secondly, you answered the door without any shackles or any restaurants, your obviously here because you chose to stay. Which works into the third reason, I understand your situation."

"Really?"

"When I was your age I ran away from home to prove myself to my family, I didn't return until I was sure I was ready. I did regret it, but I didn't want my choice to mean nothing. From the sound of your story, you feel the same about your training."

Like always, he understood me completely. He could always find out our true feelings about things, could always tell if we were lying. His power to sympathize was legendary, especially when it came to me. We always thought similar things about situations.

"Speaking of. We always fought with your toy swords when you were little. I think we should do it again, for old times sake. What do you say?"

I grinned. "I accept. I was hoping to challenge you when I got back anyways."

Guess it's true what they say, like father like son.

* * *

(Timeskip.)

"You ready Jaune?" Dad asked from across the homemade arena.

"Ready as I'll ever be dad." I shout back as I pulled out Crocea Mors.

Dad looked at it with concern. "Is that Crocea Mors? What happened to it?"

Oh yeah, this wasn't Crocea Mors's original form. I've used it's new form for so long that I forgot what it was originally like.

I sheepishly scratch the back of my head. "Ditto has this thing about adaptability on the battlefield. He turned the sword into a gun and made it dust compatible as well. He did the same thing with the shield."

He gave it a once over before sighing. "Well at least he knew what he was doing. Would have killed him if that sword was wrecked in any way. Well, ready when you are."

"What about your weapon?"

"Why it's right here." With the swing of his arm a blade made of aura appeared in his hand. It's shape resembled Crocea Mors.

Seeing my shock my dad chuckled. "Jaune, there's something you should know about our Arc tradition. That sword was made by the first warrior Arc, the yellow death. It used to be passed down to the most promising male child of the current Arc head as an act of trust. It showed that the older Arc trusted the new world to the younger Arc. That is why previous owners vow to stay away from battlefields...I was never given the sword, it hurt to know my father didn't trust me, that's why I ran away in the first place."

I took in the new information. I always assumed dad was just too strong for the sword.

Dad continued his story. "This is why I'm allowed to fight despite my old age. It's also the reason I made my own style of fighting O f course, my unhealthy desire to wield Crocea Mors made my semblance what it is today. It allowed me to use the training I received. That is how I became the hunter I am today."

"Well isn't that ironic. I spent so much time believing I couldn't be a hero because I wasn't born perfect like you. I was scared that I couldn't keep up, so I accepted the training that my kidnapper offered. But in the end, the one I truly believed was born a hero started out just like me." I couldn't help but laugh.

My dad joined in. "Indeed. Well I guess this will be a battle between runaway's." Dad said before as he bent downward, holding his sword like a dagger.

"No, a battle between father and son." I corrected as I pressed the button on my shield, doubling its size instantly.

We stared at each other for a moment, dad exhaled as I moved my shield in front of me. The sound of birds welcomed the bright day as both of us grinned with anticipation.

In seconds my father was on me. His strikes assaulted my shield, each one as powerful as the last. He made unexpected upward swing that knocked my shield upwards, giving him an opening to kick my stomach. I slid a few feet and had to regain my balance.

"Come Jaune, show me the fruits of your labor!" The power in his voice was just as I remembered. It always used to intimidate me but now it exited me.

"My turn!" I shouted back.

I swung from side to side, each swing causing dad to back-step as he dodged. Then I threw in a stab which he also back-stepped, he just didn't expect my sword to suddenly extend. The shock of his torso getting hit allowed me to send a kick of my own at his face.

"How was that?" I asked my staggered father.

"Magnificent!" Dad responded, his glee written across his face.

We both went on the offensive this time, our swords clashed several times before something that shocked my father occurred. His sword shattered. I wanted to be a gentleman about it and let him recoup but my instincts told me to go for gold. I gave him an uppercut to the chin with my shield.

He did a flip mid-air and landed perfectly on his feet. "Wow, what a hit!"

"You OK over there dad? Or is old age finally getting to you?" I taunted.

"Bah! I'm not going to let Grimm or age take me down. The only one who can do that is your mother. But I will say that I'm impressed Jaune. I didn't know my swords were capable of breaking." He said as he summoned another sword. "Now let us fight to our hearts content!"

We clashed again. It was very similar to our last, but every time one of dads swords broke he would summon another. Our styles were becoming too predictable, we were at a standstill, we had to change things up.I blocked a few strikes with my shield before ramming him with all my might, creating distance between us.

"Take this." I shot miniature rockets out of my shield, their target dodged most of them with grace before summoning two swords to slice up the rest. This created a smoke cloud that covered a large portion of the field.

Out of the clouds he flew. His sprint reminded me of an assassin, his body was low to the ground as he ran. It was so low that he wasn't higher than my waist. I slammed my shield into the earth to avoid damage to my legs but my father lunged over my shield and dropped kicked me.

"I'm not finished." Dad warned.

He sent a flurry of slashes at me to overwhelm me. I could have parried them all if he was using one sword but the double trouble he sent at me was impossible to stop without my shield. With as much strength I could muster I gave him a horizontal swing powerful enough to shatter both swords and send him flying back into the dissipating cloud.

I ran to my shield to pick it up, but dad was already back in my face, mid-downward slash. The force of the swing was strong enough to destroy his sword but also disarm me.

Before he was able to follow up I grabbed my shield and did a spin, gaining the momentum to increase the damage of my punch. He tried to redirect the shield with his sword but didn't notice that it retracted into a smaller form. He tried to parry too soon, a fatal mistake that gave me a clean hit to his nose. As soon as my fist hit it's target I made my shield go back to it's larger form, the sudden growth of the shield gave it the extra omf it needed to send dad flying.

Both of us were trying to regain our breath. Dad was sitting up, rubbing his nose. I fell to one knee, using my shield to hold me up. Our earlier wounds were finally affecting us both.

Though hurt, dad laughed with joy. "That's the way Jaune! You've truly grown in these last few years!"

I couldn't help but chuckle back. "Well I do have a legacy to continue."

"And what a legacy it'll become." Dad grunted as he stood on his two feet. "But with all do respect, I think it's about time we ended this."

"I couldn't agree more." I pulled myself and my weapons up. "Arc tradition?"

"Oh yeah. It's time for the Arc family 'last hoorah'!"

The arena grew cold from our released aura. Both of us started to shake after seeing the other. Not out of fear but hype.

"Heirloom's legend!" My dad roared.

He created hundreds of swords, all of which were surrounding him like a storm. This was his most prized technique, something that he only ever told stories about. He only ever used this on an opponent that deserved it. And I was more than honored I was about to receive it.

"Fatal Forgery!" I yelled back.

Once I awakened my semblance with Ditto and found out about its ability to act as a battery, I was informed to practice with it on my own time. He believed that it's only use was in situations where I had comrades.

I believed him at first, but as I started to practice with it I found it could do so much more. It could amplify things, in this case I was amplifying my physical capabilities in exchange for aura. This was my secret weapon against Ditto.

* * *

(3rd person.)

The rest of the battle wasn't too important. Just a father and a son giggling like idiots as they beat the crap out of each other. You know, guy stuff. It may have started out as a test but the battle had now evolved into a matter between men.

For Jaune Arc, it was his first chance to see his growth and finally show his father something he could be proud of.

For Gris Arc, it was a reminder of a time where battles were just for fun, where you could go all out without having to worry about casualties. It was also his greatest dream come true. No longer would he need to crush his sons dreams to keep him safe, it was too late. His son was already at his goal, he just didn't know it yet.

* * *

**Finally made it down the page did ya? Good for you, I know for a fact that I'm worn out from it. I would like to go over something important. I'm going to change my upload schedule a tad bit. Every weekend I'll upload a chapter for one of my main three stories; the gamer one, the joker one and this one. I'll also upload a chapter for one of my 'back burner' fanfics every second week. This way I won't get overwhelmed. Now, before you go rest I have some questions to ask you.**

**1: What should I call Jaune's home town? I have looked all over the place for its name and haven't found it, so I'd like a temporary name for it. It will stay until the town's name is said in the show.**

**2: Who should I put in the harem? It was bound to happen folks, I planned to have every prominent character get a child with Jaune but that doesn't mean that they will get together. I'm going to avoid Jaune x Male pairings because of my stance on this Jaune's sexuality. However, just because his harem will only be female doesn't mean I want every girl who got a 3d model to beg for his affections; the connections between the two will be earned through multiple interactions. So pick you roster readers, I'll do my best to deliver.**

**3: How would you guys like to see Jaune and Pyrrha's roles reverse during the story? Since Jaune is going to be quite strong(underestimation.) I was thinking that he'd spark Pyrrha's competitive spirit and end up training her through fun spars. **

**Oh, and before anyone asks; I used the term hunter as a gender neutral variant to huntsman and huntress.**

**Good day everybody, rest well!**


	6. Chapter 5: Homecoming

**Look what I found! It's chapter 4! Were almost there guys, Beacon is just one chapter away! Ain't it exciting? Anyway, I'll get on with the reviews so you can get busy reading.**

**Eragon1928374655: I'm glad you liked the chapter! Gonna be honest, after you comment about OOMF I really wanted to name the chapter OOMF.**

**Alewar Warinot: **

**-Firstly, I like your ideas about the name. **

**-Secondly, no need to worry about the harem aspect(I'm not a Wattpad writer!). The reason I asked about the harem choices was because having every single character is unrealistic(Even for a fanfiction about a fantasy world.) and would make it difficult to web together a chart that would lead to a harem that large(I feel that if Jaune got together with Weiss first then she would be against a harem. But if he already had a harem and joined then she may be more open to the idea because there's proof it works.)**

**-Thirdly, I already have plans to make Penny a harem member cause it works very well with the plot of the story.**

**-Fourthly, incest may have a theme in the present part of the story, not sure yet. I do know that there will be incest themes when the future child of Jaune x sister appears but that is more of a possibility/route that didn't happen to this Jaune.**

**Qwertynus: Good to know people like my idea about reverse Arckos. Also as I said before, maybe it will. Just know that the future sections don't count for this(I plan to have a child between Jaune and Ozpin appear from a future where they're gay lovers. This puts the very straight Ozpin and Jaune in an awkward situation, comedy then ensues.)**

**Seem14: Thanks for the compliments buddy, glad you like the fanfic. I did want to use Ansel as the town name at first but then realized that it wasn't the canon name(I like to the stick to the canon as much as possible.) and decided against it. For the size of the harem...that remains to be seen. It may grow every now and then, just I don't want 10 chicks apart of it in a matter of chapters so I am limiting it loosely. Lastly I'm a fan of the yandere troupe without any knowledge of when my love for it began.**

**Giorno: Jaunes arsenal with be properly detailed next chapter, don't worry.**

**Kharn: Never thought about the reaction the parents will have when they see Ditto but by golly did you unintentionally start something magnificent.**

**Guest #1: Jaune's dad is a bit of an odd case. He lived a similar life and then grew to understand his own fathers ideals, to keep him safe from the outside world. Then when the whole ordeal came up and Gris saw Jaune again, he remembered how he felt way back when.**

**Guest #2: Yeah, I know what you mean about the Arkos stuff however this fanfic is a tad different as you'll soon find out. But when it comes to training past Jaune I know some problems will appear because of it(The butterfly effect.). I 'fixed' this problem in a sense; Ditto literally can't do anything to change the future without Chronos's permission(Chronos is making sure that the future will remain on the same general path.). As for the problem of Jaune being weak and strong in those fanfics...well I'm sure you can see that is not the case in this fanfic.**

* * *

Chapter 4: Homecoming.

(Location: ?)

(Time: BB/Before Beacon, Jaune is 16 years of age.)

(POV: Ditto.)

When I 'took in' Jaune, my plan to make Jaune a warrior of warriors was set in motion. I was going to make him the perfect huntsman in mind and body by training him personally until I deemed him ready.

But today my entire plan went out the window. My original plan was to train Jaune until he was of age to go to Beacon before I gave him 'the test', a battle I wouldn't hold back.

I told Jaune this every year that had passed. In the beginning he said he was ready to do it(I didn't believe him of course.) though he eventually learned how strong I was and stopped trying out of fear. So guess how surprised I was to find Jaune challenge me out of nowhere.

Surprise was the only thing I could muster; somehow, somewhere, my pupil grew a large brass pair. I really wanted to deny him, it conflicted with my plans and his strength was far from up to snuff. But his eyes told me something different, strength hidden away for the right moment.

I couldn't say no to him, so now we are walking to the testing grounds which is a very special place to me. It was a vast cavern filled with a special kind of dust, and was the place I asked out my worlds Pyrrha.

"Whoa…" Jaune said in awe.

"Yeah, it's very pretty isn't it?" I smiled at him.

"We're fighting here?" He questioned.

"Yeah. I have personal reasons for it. Why do you ask? You having second thoughts?" I ask the boy turned man.

"Yep, like what do I need to do to pass?" I smiled at his witty retort.

"It's simple Jaune. You will come at me and I'll come at you, the one who can't move in the end is the loser." I say.

"Sounds simple enough. I just know there's more to it." Jaune said, knowing to read in between the lines.

"Right you are Jaune. I won't be using any semblance aside from my original but that is the only handicap I will have. I will wear my armor, use my real weapon and come at you with everything I got. Be ready to fight for your life Jaune." My words cause Jaune to nod.

With his consent given I prepare my arsenal. I put my armored bodysuit on and checked to be sure everything was in place. Then I used an earth controlling semblance to dig up my true weapon; my Crocea Mors.

Throughout my time here, I had used Pyrrha's weapons during combat. However I was never good at wielding mechashift weapons, I prefer the classics.

Unlike my students newly upgraded Crocea Mors, my Crocea was battered and time worn. Both the sword and shield were rusting, caked in splatters of red blood that could easily be mistaken for paint.

The shields lower portion was torn off in a way that made the bottom looked like teeth. My sword was chipped along the blade, making grooves that made it seem serrated. Honestly, if my father saw the blades condition he would freak out before I stabbed him in the eyes. I would never allow him to see his precious blade unless he was on the receiving end.

But I shouldn't think about that right now, I have pressing matters to attend to. I made my way back to Jaune, the look on his face showed a lapse in his determination before it came back tenfold.

"Those are good eyes Jaune." I say calmly as I place my helmet on my head. "Hope your able to keep them."

We were at a standoff, waiting for the other to move an inch. While Jaune's face showed his overbearing will, my face held a smile. Though he would never be able to tell.

* * *

(POV: Jaune.)

I finally asked Ditto for his final test after years of waiting for the right moment. Though, I don't think I would have found the right moment I was looking for, I didn't have the guts to challenge Ditto because I feared I would die.

Then I fought with my father, connected with him. The last moments were a blur to be sure. My shining aura and his hurricane of swords not only blinded us both, it also left us unconscious.

Dad said we would decide the victor later which gave me something to look forward too. But I don't think that is what caused me to do this, I think it was his final words before he left.

When he left he said. "_The whole family can't wait to see you again Jaune. So don't take too long you hear, I can only keep things together for so long, you're our only permanent solution."_

Those were his last words he said to me. They stuck to me like glue and pushed me forward. So when my birthday finally arrived I asked Ditto for the test.

As it turned out, my fears were very accurate and true. When he pulled out his terrifying looking weapon I instantly felt sweat form on my back. I should have taken that as a sign of danger but I didn't have time to think as he was instantly on my rear with slashes.

I believe I was putting up a good fight, we were both trading blows and he was being held back a fair bit. He always ended up hitting harder, always seemed to be quicker and always seemed to land the hits he wanted to.

I was bleeding all over the place. Most of it was from stab wounds on my chest that came from when he shoved the rigid part of his shield into it.

While I was bleeding out he remained perfectly fine in his armored body. Was it unfair? Yes it was. I just know that combat is never fair.

We attacked each other again, my blood loss becoming apparent as my body became slower than usual. It was just sad now, Ditto barley put effort into his dodges and parries anymore, he also stopped attack all together. He was trying to tire me out and succeeding.

"Nice try kiddo but this is the end of the line." Ditto said as he swung downwards.

His blade sliced into my shoulder, it's dull edge only allowing it to go a quarter of the way in. Then he started doing a sawing motion with his sword, pushing downward as he did so. The weapon now made it down to my intestines; I was far too tired to scream in pain.

I couldn't breathe anymore, images and illusions were flooding my vision. Images of my family, my old school friends...and my childhood hero. A white caped huntress who said the world needs more heroes.

"_Don't let those bullies keep you down little guy. We are all capable of doing great things, you just need to work a little harder. You may be a frail boy now but given time, you could be the world's greatest hero, with a cool weapon and semblance to boot."_

'I'm an idiot.' I thought to myself.

I still haven't revealed my ace in the hole. All I needed to do was execute a plan that could use it to the fullest. I glanced around and found that the dust crystals were aura replenishment crystals. They were crystals that slowly gave aura to people who could use it as long as their aura was close enough to activate it.

(Amplifying aura reach.)

I forced my aura's activation range to expand so it filled the room. My aura was instantly topped up and was starting to get overloaded. I needed to fix that quick.

(Amplifying regeneration rate and regeneration effectiveness.)

My wounds were completely healed. My wounds that would have been fatal to any huntsman became nothing more than a faint mark. I stood up and readied myself for my next move. Ditto who once stood over me was now a decent distance away.

(Disabling amplified regeneration rate and regeneration effectiveness.)

(Amplifying speed and strength.)

Ditto stood there without a care in the world, no doubt his curiosity got the better of him. He allowed me to charge this attack, labeling him a hypocrite for not following his own warnings.

(Amplifying amplified speed and strength.)

My body started to glow a variety of colors. I knew for a fact that this wouldn't be doable in any other situation. It was thanks to the conveniently placed crystals that allowed this to happen. Don't feel guilty though, Ditto was the one who taught me to take things as they are after all.

(Amplifying amplified x2 speed and strength.)

Even if it was underhanded and unbecoming of a hero, that didn't matter to me right now. Right now I was a huntsman, someone who would do all they could to win.

I launched my flurry of strikes, giving it everything I had. 'I'll be home soon everybody.'

* * *

(POV: Ditto.)

The pain I felt was overwhelmed with pride. I was in a heavenly limbo of unstoppable slashes. I couldn't move a muscle as he juggled me through the air, nor did I try to. His strikes at this moment were too strong to block or parry. Of course that wasn't an issue, why try to block or parry when your too slow to react in the first place.

I felt every wallop and swing as my body bent and lurched did to the blows. My aura had shattered the first few slashes and now my armor is taking the full beating.

First it got scuffed, then scraped, then nicked. Eventually his blows were leaving large marks on the armor. The scuffs disappeared as my helm shattered from the onslaught, the scraps conjoined into a huge gash across my chest plate and the nicks on my protective shell had foreshadowed my now missing limb.

Though my status was reduced to that of a bean bag I was ecstatic. The reason for this was because I could now see my pupils progress with my own eyes. Once my mask was gone and was no longer blinding me I got to see my student's will with the best seats you could possibly have.

My favorite part of the whole show was the final part of it. When Jaune rammed his blade through my heart, the momentum causing me to land on the protruding dust crystals below.

Jaune had tears in his eyes and was saying words I couldn't hear because of the ringing in my ears. All I could do was smile at his antics and accept my fate. An evildoer who tried to repent got his reward, his deathbed got to be his most sacred place.

This was the place he ran to so he could avoid his abusive family.

This was the place he buried his family after he killed them.

This was the place he asked out Pyrrha during his days of simply wanting to be loved.

This was the place he ran Pyrrha through when he found out her feelings were false.

This was the last place he visited before taking down the four kingdoms. After Salem and her rebellion were laid to waste by my own hands, after she whispered her last wishes in my arms.

"_Can you bury me and my comrades in a peaceful place? A place where malice doesn't exist? Take our semblances like you took our lives if you must, all I ask is this."_

I did just that and brought them here, one by one, to this very spot. When I carried Salem's limp body and asked if it would suffice she said it was perfect. I still think I cheated when granting her request, can't have peace in a place where the concept was never needed in the first place.

However I finally understand what she meant now. My technique to sense aura and emotions is exactly how she perceived the world. She perceived the world as a Grimm, always aware of the negativity around her. But in this place, where the crystals overpower that sense with emotionless aura, everything seems so peaceful, so quite.

Dying here is truly an honor. I opened my blurred eyes again and looked at my student who was in mourning. He was the only thing I did right that didn't involve killing. 'I'm proud of you kid.'

"_**Your story isn't over yet."**_ Chronos stated.

As I was about to accept my fate Chronos spoke to me. 'Isn't over?'

"_**The huntsman named Jaune Arc, who stopped a rebellion and gave out justice to his superior, is no more than in infamous killer who died due to the gods he brought upon himself. But the huntsman named Ditto, who trained a youth into the next savior and stood tall as he repented, has yet to die."**_ Chronos stated.

'Your right. I'm not Jaune Arc, that name belongs to my pupil. I'm Ditto, a risk taking huntsman who goes to great lengths for his students.' I thought with resolve. 'I gotta get up.'

With every ounce of strength I could muster, I pulled myself up and off the spikes with major difficulty. I only managed to get up with Jaune's aid, his worry ever present on his face.

"Ditto!? Your alive!?" He asked with shock.

"Thought I wasn't going to be but I was given a second chance at life and I'm not squandering it." I said back.

"H-Here, let me give you some aura." He stated as he poured his aura reserves into my own.

"Thanks. I can take it from here though." I used his aura to heal my wounds, making sure that I only partially healed the big ones so I could be reminded of this day.

"What about your arm?" Jaune asks with concern.

I smiled. "A war wound like this is too good to pass up. Nice move by the way, it caught me off guard."

Jaune scratched the back of his head. "Well I did hide it from you so I could use it for this very occasion."

"That's probably why you were so good at using it." I chuckled. "Now I want to give you something else as a reward on top of your ability to go home."

I held back my laughter when I saw Jaune's face. I knew it was about to get better when I revealed it to him.

I pretended to ponder what his gift should be. "Let's see...what to give you...oh I know. Jaune, how would you like my entire collection of semblances and aura capacity?"

"Aura capacity? Collection of semblances? I thought you just had a ton of aura and a diverse semblance. It does make more sense but I thought having more than one semblance was impossible." Jaune said honestly.

"It is for most people and you aren't wrong about my semblance being diverse. My actual semblance allows me to take aura and add it to my own. When somebody is alive when I use it I just drain their aura to recharge my own. When someone is dead when I use it, I take their aura capacity and add it to my own, this also gives me their semblance." I explain.

"W-why would you give them to me then?" Jaune looks worried, like he'll break under the responsibility. "I mean shouldn't you keep them since you know how to use them?"

He made a good point, but mine is better. "You're missing the point Jaune, I'm getting older and I am unable to use these abilities for anything anymore. It would be a waste to just safeguard them and I'd rather the collection get passed down to another person so they all don't disappear once I die."

Jaune started to fidget. "Alright, makes sense. I just don't think I'm the best choice for it."

I laughed at him for that one. "Jaune, you passed the final test, you've proven your more than capable to take up the mantle. But if you still don't like the idea of it being a gift then take the collection as a request instead."

"Request?"

I nodded. "Yes Jaune, I want you to have these abilities. You are the only person I trust with them, you will be able to keep them safe as they will do the same to you. So use the powers you gain to the maximum of their potential. It will start out weak, but as you connect the power and abilities you can use will just become more and more vast."

"Well if it starts out weak…"

"Jaune, I'll let you in on a secret. These abilities are practically add-ons in comparison to what you can do now. For example, did you realize that you currently have half of my total aura capacity? My aura capacity was quite a bit larger than average when I started out but now my aura capacity 20 times its original size thanks to my collection. You have an aura capacity that's the same size as half of that." I said to put it into perspective.

Jaune's eyes went wide as he realized what I was implicating.

"On top of that, these combined aura's will grow to match the size they were with me proportionally speaking, meaning that you'll eventually have a collection of aura capacity 20 times larger than your own. If you thought I was a monster, just imagine what kinda being you'll become from my spoils." I say with a grin.

Jaune's look of worry became one of dread. "On second thought I think I'l-"

"Too late, already transferred it. Have fun being a human with the destructive capabilities of the entire Atlas military." I teased.

Jaune then cracked under the pressure and fainted.

"Well...guess I'll take you home." I said as I carried Jaune's body over my shoulder.

* * *

(Timeskip.)

(Location: Roma outskirts.)

(POV: Ditto.)

I carried the brat to his hometown of Roma, my body was already feeling the affects of the aura transfer. Strength was leaving my body as I rapidly aged.

It was common knowledge that aura did mysterious things to your body. It made your muscles denser, giving you strength that didn't fit your appearance. Aura even kept you looking younger longer, the more you had the more effective it was.

So having the aura capacity taken from you at a rapid pace will have some major effects on your looks. My body used to look like that of a person in their early 20's, now it looked more like my late 30's.

My well trimmed hair and beard was already turning grey near the roots and my skin started to show how much experience I have as a huntsman. Still looked good considering I just turned 50.

Speaking of my ruggish good looks, this will be the first time I entered this town unmasked. I wonder how the Arc family will react to my old mug. Well it's not like I'll be staying for long, got some things at beacon that need my attention.

"So that's what you look like." The voice of Jaune's father said from the underbrush to my right.

"Bet you still can't figure out who I am." I challenged.

"I don't care who you are, the fact of the matter is that you stole a boy from his loving family." He grunted.

I would have snarked at that comment if I hadn't made peace with the fact they weren't my family.

Instead I made a joke. "I consider it an extended rental."

"I would beat you senseless for making a joke like that but it looks like I was beaten to the punch." Gris said.

"It was far more than a punch Gris. If it was then your boy would still be training under me for another year." My words made Gris's face change to a surprised one.

"He did what he set out to do?" He questioned.

"And then some, he kicked my ass. You should be very proud Gris, you witnessed first hand how strong I am, how much aura I have. Now as a gift, I have given every bit of it to your son here as a reward for his graduation from hell." I told Gris with pride.

I maneuvered Jaune with my only arm so I could fling him at his father. Gris caught him with ease before setting him gently aside. Staring straight into my eyes, Gris stood firm but without worry.

"Thank you for returning my son, it's good to have him back. But I can't forgive you for what you've done. I understand Jaune stayed of his own accord but he wouldn't have been there in the first place if it wasn't for you. Please stay away from my family." Gris asked politely.

"I don't want to see your family in the first place. I did what I set out to do and now have something else that needs taking care of. Busy schedule, you know how it is." I said as I began walking off.

"What are you trying to accomplish in the first place? Why Jaune?" His words made me halt.

I turned to him. "I saw a kid like me, talent-less and wishing for greatness, in a situation that would ultimately cause him harm. You wanted to protect your child but you should have known that his Arc stubbornness would lead him down the path of a warrior anyways. If that were to happen then his lack of training and skill would get him killed."

"A kid like you?"

"I too was talent-less, my parent's and sisters beat me to near death for it. However I learned that being talent-less just means that you have to work harder than anyone else. Eventually I killed my family with the skill I tempered myself, despite the fact I was talent-less. I used my method to train Jaune into what he is." I continued.

"You didn't really answer my question. There has to be something bigger going on right?" Jaune's father deduced.

I nodded. "Correct. I would love to tell you all about it but I have an unscheduled meeting with Ozpin to attend. See you when I see you."

With that I left my unconscious former pupil in his father's hands. I had so much to do in so little time. I had at most 12 hours to enter beacon and get the main job done.

The main job is to talk to Ozpin and convince him to let Jaune into his academy. Breaking in and speaking to Ozpin should take about 1 hour. My real issue though is figuring out how many people I can piss off in 11 hours and who.

* * *

(Location: Arc residence.)

(POV: Jaune.)

My eyes had difficulty opening, felt like the first time I was hit by a truck. When I finally was able to open my eyes fully, I found that I was in a nostalgic room. It had superhero posters on the walls, comics thrown about, my homework that was still on my study table.

Nothing had changed in the room since I left. This made me smile. Then I remembered a very important fact; this was my old room, this room was located at home. The thought dawned on me and forced me out of my bed in seconds. 'I'm home!'

I ran to the door and swung it open, finding my dad on the other side with a tray that had two cups of coffee on it. He stared at me and I stared at him.

Eventually my father said. "Welcome home my boy." Him and I to smile at each other for what seemed like years.

* * *

(Timeskip.)

"Have a seat kiddo." My dad said.

I did as I was told and sat on the couch in front of him.

"Now, your mom is currently out and about, we practically have the house to ourselves. That's why me and you are going to have a talk man to man." He continued, putting me on edge.

"What's up dad?" I ask with growing concern.

He gives me a grim look. "I need your help with something."

"Of course, anything." I respond.

Dad goes silent for a moment, his brain stringing together the right words to say. Eventually he shakes his head and stares me dead in the eye.

"This household has broken down after your disappearance." He bluntly says.

Dread starts to crawl up my back. "W-what do you mean?"

Dad sighs. "I'll tell you what's been happening to each of our family members one by one. Don't interrupt me when I do so, it's hard enough as it is to tell you as it is."

I nod and prepare myself for his explanation. He takes a deep breath in before he speaks.

"Lefts go from oldest to youngest. I've stopped being a huntsman for a little while, I'm the most emotionally sound in this family right now and it's my duty as the family head to ensure my family doesn't fall apart. But that made it so we stopped getting income, our savings went dry, so your mother ended up taking my place as the provider of the family. She rarely comes home anymore."

'What…?' My eyes widened at this. Mom was always against fighting, she considered herself a pacifist after she stopped hunting. She also would never just up and leave her family.

"Then we have your sister Rouge. She became a workaholic after you were gone and ended up moving to Vale to pursue a business. She became quite the big-shot too, she now owns the company that produces tombs, the portable/console gaming system that also triples as a communication device. We are very proud of her and keep in touch as much as we can but even though we're her family, we still need to make an appointment just to say hello."

This was just as surprising for me. Rouge always put family first, she was even proposed to by the boyfriend she had since she was 13 and turned him down because he called Vert a boy.

"At least she isn't as bad as Saffron. After you left, she took up training again and went to Atlas academy to become a huntress. Since she left, we've only been able to contact her once, and that was a few weeks before I found you in Vacuo."

Saffron too!? If I was younger I would have thought it was cool for her to be training. But now, after I matured, I realized that it would be rude of me to think that when she just wants a normal life.

"Noir and Blanc also went the huntress route. At first they went to Haven academy but this year they were transferred to Beacon for reasons we are unaware of. They at least keep in touch, though I could do without their constant complaints about each other. I swear that those two oppose each other like magnets nowadays, they're at each other's throats even though they're on the same team...as partners."

Even the twins huh...I could never imagine a world where Noir and Blanc split up. An argument here and there, sure, totally fine. But hating each other? No way in hell that could happen.

"It's not all terrible though. Vert and Blueu are currently prodigies in their respective fields. Vert is currently attending Bunker academy as we speak and will be returning for her break so we can celebrate her birthday. She even skipped a year. Blueu on the other hand has received many medals for her brilliance and is shadowing some great scientists who specialize in the field of dust science."

Well at least something positive has happened. They are still probably affected in some negative way, but at least it isn't keeping them down.

"Then we have Violet. She...well she...I think it's best if you saw for yourself." Dad said solemnly.

I braced myself for the worst as I followed dad down the hallway. Once we reached her room I could already tell something wasn't right; her door was covered in scratch marks and the paint was coming off in flakes.

"I think it's best if you went in there alone." Dad said as he leaned on the wall to the right of the door.

"...What do I need to know before I go in there? Is she injured or something?" Dad shook his head at my question.

"She took your departure the hardest. She thinks your still here, she mistakes you for a doll you gave her years ago. This made your sisters push her away because they thought she was mocking them. Not one of your sisters have tried to console her, and I'm not close enough to do anything about it." He paused as he moved his fingers to his temples. "She's...been living the same day over and over for 6 years."

Dad was tearing up, the pain that powerlessness brought was ever present on his face. I was at a lost for words myself. I wanted to tear up too, console my father and tell everyone that I'm OK. But my training with ditto has taught me that words alone won't make anything better.

I had to be smart, know that facts and see the issue through different angles. So I held back my tears and steeled myself for what was to come. I pushed open the door and came face to face with the issue at hand.

There Violet was, sitting on her knees across from a moldy looking rag as she poured it and herself pretend tea. Talking about her day as she fed the thing animal crackers.

The room itself was a in complete chaos, there was trash and food scraps everywhere you looked. Garbage bags were also present, signifying that an attempt to clean was made but given up on.

The rag she was sitting across from looked nothing like a doll no matter how hard you squinted. It was a brownish green color and had blackish strings popping out every which way. I had to think back quite a bit to figure out its origin.

The 'doll' in front of her had to be the limited edition white pumpkin pete bunny I gave her long ago. I only ever gave her 1 doll so my assumption had to be correct. But if that was the case, then how did the doll go from white to brown and green!?

My last observation was of Violet. Her hair was overgrown and disheveled, reaching the floor due to its length. Her clothes were far too small and were just hung on her body, if it weren't for the blanket that was draped on her back I would have been given a picture of my sister in the nude.

Disturbing is all my mind could say when I saw her. Violets eyes were especially concerning; her eyes that had been full of life where gone and replaced by an empty void.

I refuse to believe this is my sister! My sister, who always did her best when she colored; my sister, who always cried 'big brother!' and tackled me when I got home; my sister, who would pretend she was scared of the dark so she could sleep in the same bed as me.

No, this had to stop here and now. I walked up to Violet and her guest slowly. Then I coughed into my hand to make my presence known, drawing Violets dead,curious eyes.

I smiled and asked. "Is this seat taken?"

She shook her head and I sat down. "Would you like some tea mister?"

"Yes please." I politely accepted.

She poured me a cup and warned me about how hot it was. Taking careful 'sips' after blowing the cup, I started to feel a warm feeling. The twisted nostalgia I took hold and filled me with the determination needed to stick to the plan.

"So how was your day today Jaune?" Violet asked the doll.

"It was good Violet. How was your day?" I answered for the doll.

She gave a look of slight confusion, like what she expected to happen had happened but it felt wrong. In that moment I saw something in her eyes flicker.

She continued to face the doll, like I hadn't been the one to speak, and responded with. "My day was very, very, very, very good. I learned how to count to ten and learned my shapes. My teacher was so surprised that I was given a sticker!"

"Did you make any friends?" I questioned through the doll, causing yet another flicker.

She tilted her head. "Why would I need friends when I have the greatest brother in the world?"

I chuckled at that. "But how will you get married if you don't go and make friends?"

"Why would I marry a boy? They're yucky!" She said after sticking out her tongue. "The only boy I like is big brother! I'm going to marry big brother just like you promised!"

It completely slipped my mind I had promised her that. I was like 9 when I promised to marry her. Obviously it was a mistake to tread on these tracks, gotta bring the conversation back.

"I'm not all that great." I wave off.

In an instant Violet shoots up. "That's not true! Big brother is the coolest big brother in the world. He always gives me treats, reads me bedtime stories and scares away the boys who bully me."

Violets eyes had a glint of hope in them once more. I smiled at this new development for two reasons; 1, it feels good to be appreciated and 2, it's good to see her vigor return. Now for the difficult part.

I start speaking as if I'm the rabbit. "But I don't have any arms or legs anymore. I'm stuck in a chair, I smell funny and I'm ugly."

Violet freezes up, her eyes show that she's processing everything. As time passes her eyes darken even more then they were previously. The pained smile she had was now an indifferent line.

"What's wrong with that?" She asks. "I don't care how you smell and I don't care if your ugly. So long as you don't leave again I will always be by your side, and an Arc never goes back on there word."

She slowly made her way over to corpse of a stuffed animal and squeezes it until the stuffing comes out.

"And to make sure I keep my word, I took off your arms and legs." She said plainly.

As frightening as it was to hear that, it was important to press on. "But wouldn't you prefer it if I could hug you back? Wouldn't you like it if you could warm up with me when it gets cold?"

My words make Violet squeeze the doll tighter.

"We could bake cookies with mom just like we used to."

Her body started to shake.

"Go outside and have picnics."

The shaking intensified.

"Read your favorite bedtime stories."

The sound of sniffles could now be heard.

"Pretend to be superheroes with capes and superpowers."

Her body lurked forward, arms still wrapped around her body tight despite the slipping doll.

"And when times get tough, for either of us, we could go to our special spot. It would just be you and me watching the stars. Then when we get tired we'll put our necklaces together, go home and cuddle up in bed."

That was the last straw, the doll finally fell to the floor as Violet fell to her side. She quietly sobbed as she curled up into a ball. I felt guilty but knew it was for the best, Ditto believed that the best way to fix something was to start from square one, break the thing down and build it back up again.

I walked up to her and leaned down to hold her in my arms. I was attacked relentlessly, the claws that all children have stabbed and slashed at me to halt my advance. Eventually I got my arms around Violet and her assault slowed to a stop.

"I know I was gone for a long time my dearest little sister. But I'm back now and don't plan on leaving town for awhile. I promise that I'll spend all the time I can with you in that time."

She sobbed into my chest and her body went limp. My chest became soaked in 6 years worth of pent up tears. The tears dried after some time passed.

"I don't believe that, you'll leave me all alone again the first chance you get." Violet weakly mumbled into my hoodie.

I chuckle. "Cut me some slack my wee-little-v, an Arc never goes back on their word remember."

She looked me in the eyes. Her blue shining orbs stared deep into my soul as she finally put everything together. "Jaune?"

"Much better than your replacement right?" I joked.

"Jaune!" She hugged me this time, her tears coming back for round 2. I smiled and held her back, looking at the doorway to see my father give a nod of approval and mouth 'I'll give you some privacy.' before walking down the hall.

* * *

**Man, this chapter is long too. Ah well, it's not like you guys will complain about a little extra story. Though there is a lack of detail in the battle between Ditto and Jaune, I felt that it wasn't necessary. I already did a big battle scene one chapter prior and this chapter was more about bringing everything together for the Beacon Arc(Heh, Arc.).**

**Before people say I'm making Jaune too powerful or that they dislike how much I'm pointing out that fact. Then let me just say that you should have expected it, I put it in the description after all. Besides, the overpowered bits of this fanfic are a secondary aspect of the story that makes it funny. The main portion is the children from various futures.**

**Next chapter will have Jaune enter Beacon Academy as a terror of the battlefield. He will meet the entirety of team RWBY and get a glimpse of how over-trained he is compared to his peers. The initiation will be next chapter after that.**

**Now here's a question before you all go about the rest of your day. How does sound to you guys?**

**I'm planning on making Ditto a teacher at Beacon, he would teach advanced survival studies. He would be blunt with his classes and give his students a hard time whenever he could, giving preferential treatment to Jaune(He would actually make things harder for Jaune.).**

**Though Ditto was weakened considerably this chapter, he is still quite powerful when it comes to combat(He never needed to use his aura on his opponents before so the change isn't actually substantial.). **

**I have many reasons as to why I want Ditto to be a teacher. Though my main reason for it involves a certain Schnee heiress getting told to eat shit by her teacher.**

**Anyways, that's all I have to say.**

**Good day my fellow fanficers, Spiffy.**

**(P.S: There might be some mistakes due to my lack of sleep over easter break.)**


	7. Chapter 6: Beacon's light

**Ooops, I did it again. It took a long time but it's finally out, the next chapter! Honestly, this would have been out sooner but I went on a trip over the long weekend and had to focus on graduation and school for a bit. Anyways let's get through the reviews and get onto the literature!**

** : Good to see a fellow brother in arms! Don't worry buddy, this fanfic will not become horror based in any way and will try to be as funny as possible. However, Violet's character, while yandere in the beginning, will devolve to mere clinginess. However that doesn't mean an actual yandere won't appear down the line.**

** 123: Indeed, but you'll see how we fix her education in this chapter.**

** 14: Thank you for the compliment, I appreciate it! The road to heal the Arc family will be a long one but not an impossible one. The reunion will happen eventually but I feel Beacon should come first and have the family come to him.**

** 1928374655: Here's a Neo approved tube of ice cream, eat those tears away buddy.**

** -1: I feel that child services would be more prominent in the kingdoms rather then villages outside of them. As for the funny farm, Gris was told to keep her at home by a professional. Plus if he was told otherwise he would definitely fight to keep her at home.**

** : Hope the chapter is up to your standards.**

** -2: "Hear that Ditto? People like your future position." "Shut up! Can't you see I'm preparing spitballs for the Schnee brat!?" "Alright then."**

** : Thanks for the compliment! It's kinda true that there's a pattern when it comes to these fanfics and in a way, that pattern is what draws us to the fanfics. It's the author's own twists that make a reader intrigued.**

** Warinot the juggernaut: It's good to know that my skill has grown a noticeable amount and really do hope that the chapter is still good even though I'm a tad rusty. I will continue to better myself until eventually I can write the fight scenes in a way that pops. Drama wise, the whole scenario I have put out is made to be as realistic as I could make it; nothing gets fixed in a day and everyone handles things differently, something I see some writers overlook. I also agree with your statements about mystery and have pointed one out in the chapter involving Ditto. Then you got the kids, the big ol peak of the mountain for this story. Let me tell you my thoughts on your concerns; if that's all your worried about then you'll really enjoy what I got in store for you!**

** -3: Yes and no. I do not plan to have Violet apart of the harem nor do I plan to have her be a full on yandere. She'll have her moments but she'll be pretty chill, all things considered.**

**Now that that's done, time for another long ass chapter.**

* * *

(Location: ?)

(Time: JBB/Just before Beacon, Jaune is 17 years of age.)

(POV: Jaune.)

Life's been...great? Still trying to decide really. Sure, I've reconnected with my family as much as I could but there have been some major issues. Firstly, practically all of my sisters aren't even in the house, making it difficult to let them know I'm OK. Secondly, the first problem can't be dealt with because contacting my sisters is a challenge in itself.

Out of my six missing sisters, I could only get a hold of half. The half I'm referring to is made up of my sisters Noir, Blanc and Vert, though I personally don't think Blanc and Noir count. When we called them, dad wanted to surprise them and asked me to hide, this was a huge mistake.

15 seconds into the call with Blanc, Noir tried to steal her scroll which lead to a fight that destroyed the device. When we tried calling Noir's scroll instead, Blanc decided to take revenge and break hers out of spite. We haven't heard from them since.

After our failure with Blanc and Noir, mom decided that it would be best if we got straight to the point. Following mother's sagely wisdom, I called Vert and boy was she surprised. I still remember the whole conversation.

* * *

(Flashback)

I dialed up Vert's number and waited for her to pick up.

"What do you want dad? Can't you see I'm studying?" Vert complained while surrounded in junk food wrappers.

"I'll leave you to it then." I said back while pretending to hang up.

"Who the hell are-! Jaune is that you!?" She shouted, causing me to move my head to save my ear from permanent damage.

"Pretty sure. Unless I'm a stranger who knows where you hid dad's stapler." I joked.

"Holy shit! You're fuckin huge now!" She shouts louder than before.

I deadpan. "I see that your colorful vocabulary has grown as much as I have."

"Well duh dumbass. I went to school to learn things; like how to count really quick, to locate lost things, to beat the crap out of said lost things, drag the lost things home and then beat them up more." Vert listed off.

"My goodness, I must have had a bigger effect on you then I thought. To think that my disappearance caused the leader of the anti-homework squad to learn!" I dramatically say.

"Learn is a trong word. The retarded teachers just cram useless information into your head. I mean come on! Why do I need to know that a Hellraiser's weak point is it's damn wings? All you have to do is fucken stab the bastard!" Vert complains while pulling at her hair.

"That's actually useful info young lady." I scold.

"And how do you know mister lost thing?" She questions with hostility.

I chuckle. "While I was playing damsel in distress, I was preparing myself for my future as a huntsman. Now, while I've only fought two people in over 6 years; dad, the second person I fought, says I'm pretty good."

It only dawned on me a bit later that she called me a lost thing. Putting a ton more weight behind her previous words.

Vert smirks at my boasting. "That so? Well I guess I'll have to see for myself when I come home for br...shit." She trails off before swearing, realization grows on her face.

"What is it Vert?" I ask.

"Fuck...fuck...fuck, fuck, fuck, shit, piss, damn it all!" She cried. "Fuck me in the ass and call me gay, I literally just talked to that cunt of a fucking guidance counselor about my break. I told that triple fisted bitch that I wasn't going to go home so that I could train here with the advanced equipment! The whore even told me that I couldn't change my fuckin decision because I was passed the dicked due date for my break plans! And of course my mother fucking big bro comes home after 6 years as soon as I get back to my room! Shit, fuck, piss, damn it, bitch!" Vert's flurry of profanity started to make me uncomfortable.

"And I thought that Ditto was bad." I sighed.

Vert has to catch her breath after she erupted like she did. "You know what, I'll just come next year to visit. Yeah, then I can train up a bunch and kick your ass. Be prepared Jaune!"

"Hate to burst your bubble there Vert, but I won't be here next year."

"..."

"..."

"You fuckin kidding me?" Vert says in a calm voice, her eye twitching all the while.

I nod. "Yeah, I know how strict Bunker academy is with it's days off, you only get one during winter. But by the time your next break comes around, I plan to already be at Beacon."

Vert looks simply livid. "You son of a bitch. You plan to make me fuckin wait another full year to visit my...dearest...big brother after I waited for 6 years? Well screw that! You may have joked about my study habits earlier, but you haven't seen what I'm capable of. Get ready to welcome your sister at Beacon shithead!" She yelled before hanging up.

I'm relieved and glad about the result. I'm glad because Vert still has her vulgar flair, even if it's grown exponentially. But I'm also relieved because I don't have to talk to her anymore, my virgin ears can only take so much.

* * *

(Present.)

Yup, that happened. Now I can only wait for the coming doomsday that is Vert. But let's not focus on the past or future, let's focus on the present and the people in said time. I may have been unable to talk face to face with my adventuring sisters but I could talk to the rest of my family.

My dad was very glad about me coming home, a tad too happy. There hasn't been a day that's gone by where my dad hasn't challenged me to another fight or tried to ambushed me. I always have to drop what I'm doing to either decline his challenge or to defend myself. It should have gotten annoying by now but it's actually quite soothing, reminds me of my training with Ditto but less intense.

My mother was also quite happy even though she didn't show it. She gave me a massive hug before staring at me with her signature look. She always had a small smile which looked motherly on the surface, but people who know her will understand the meaning of that look. Her smile was akin to an emotionless face, unchanging as it masks the true feelings the person holds inside.

Luckily she was less pissed at me then I thought. Her anger was instead directed at my poor father, who had falsely said I was home on multiple occasions to get her to take a break from hunting for a day. Top that with the fact he kept my location secret and you get one dad in a doghouse.

Finally we get to Violet. In the beginning she was extraordinarily clingy. She wouldn't let go of me for anything. She had to sleep in my bed in order for her to sleep, needed my help when she went to the bathroom and refused to go to school unless I was there.

It was rough for the first few months, really rough. However I was able to deal with a ton of the problems. Letting her sleep with me wasn't an issue but I made sure to get her a body pillow for when I go to Beacon. When she took me to the bathroom, I made sure to avert my eyes and told her what to do instead of doing it myself, through persuasion of course.

Then for her education. Well...since we couldn't take her to school, I thought it would be a good idea to take the matter into my own hands. She was very behind when it came to education, so I used the methods Ditto used to teach me. I don't know if it was because of my methods or because Violet was a info sponge but she was rather quick to learn what I was teaching.

She is currently at a grade 2 level of civilian education, which is astounding considering her previous state. Violet has also toned down the clinginess and is far more independent than before; won't stop her from spending all the time she can with me though.

My biggest concern about Violet is her insistence on marriage. I don't remember much about that whole situation and was very concerned that the Arc code, staying true to your word after giving your word as an Arc, would force me to marry her. But after some digging I found out that I didn't give my word as an Arc and just absentmindedly agreed to her.

I was relieved but also felt a little guilty. Violet gave 'her' word during that situation and while Arc law says that Arc's under the age of 5 won't be affected by the rule, she is still very adamant to stay true to her word. I just hope I can defuse the situation before she makes another Arc oath that ruins her chances at finding love.

All in all, life outside of Ditto's grasp is great so far and I can't wait to see what happens next.

My train of thought was halted by Violet tugging on my sleeve. "Big brother, what are you doing? We gotta go see mommy and daddy."

I laughed at her childish nature. "Alright, alright, I'm coming."

* * *

"Ahh, Jaune, good to see you my boy, have a seat." Dad said while gesturing to the chair across from him.

I sat down on the marshmallow that's my chair. It's comfy cushions dragging me down into the abyss that is bliss. Seconds later, Violet sat on her own source of bliss, my lap. Any other man would unintentionally get aroused by having a cute girl like Violet sitting and wiggling about on their lap. But thanks to my secret technique 'libido control', no such reaction will ever appear on my body. Plus I'm not a pedo so I wouldn't get aroused anyways.

"I see you got the best seat in the room Violet." Dad says with a grin.

I grin as well and begin stroking Violets head.

"Y-Yesh. Big brosher is the beshtest. I am filled with blish." Violet sighs with a goofy smile.

Dad chuckles. "Well then you'll really like what I have to say. Remember how Jaune's going to Beacon?"

Dads words cause Violet to tense up and wilt like a flower. "Ye-yeah."

"Well after a bunch of negotiations and careful-"

Dad gets cut off by mom, who just entered the room. "Were moving."

"Moving?" I look at mom quizzingly.

"Yes, I wanted to talk to you two about the finer details of your father and I's decision." Mom answered.

"We thought it would be a good idea to move to Vale." Dad finishes off.

Violet tilts her head and puts a finger to her lips. "Vale? Isn't that where big brother is going for school?" Violet asks.

"Right on the money daughter dearest! Since Jaune just got back home, it's been a pain to persuade your mother to let Jaune leave again. So instead of arguing day in and day out, I suggested that we just move closer to Beacon. That way we could see Jaune more." Dad explains.

I express my concerns. "Wait a second dad, what about the Arc estate? We can't just leave the house that's been passed down for generations."

Dad gives me a somber smile. "The Arc estate doesn't exist without Arc's to occupy it my son. Which leads us onto our next reason for moving."

"We are moving to Vale so that we can look after you, but we are also moving so that we can draw in your sisters. Vale is considered the center continent and true to its name, it's the main link between all the kingdoms, making it easier to hunt down and bring back your sisters." Mom says.

Gotta say, that the plan is sound, but that's to be expected, mom was the one who made it after all. She was always the more calculated of my parents.

"Does that mean I can see big brother everyday?" Violet asks with enthusiasm.

"Not everyday, but pretty darn close." Mother answers with a chuckle.

"Ehehe, yay!" Violet spins around and squeezes the life out of me.

Mom and dad chuckle at our interaction while I glared at them. Violet was burying herself into my chest with such force that, if I didn't have aura, she'd be six feet under.

"Hey, quick question, where exactly are we moving? We getting an apartment? A run down shack maybe?" I joke.

"Why would we move to any of those places when we can just live right on Beacon grounds?" Mother questions.

I ran her words through my head a few times and I still thought mom lost it.

"I don't think that's how it works mom. The Beacon staff would definitely be against the idea and even if they weren't, they wouldn't give up dorm rooms to non-students nor would they take money out of there budget to build us a place to live." I say with growing worry.

"Your correct on all accounts Jaune. But don't worry, your mother and I have got that covered. We've already 'persuaded' Ozpin to let us stay so long as we make the home ourselves." Dad says.

"How-"

Dad cuts me off. "I think it would be better to just show you."

Dad leads all of us outside of the house. He makes us travel a fair distance before turning towards the house.

"Your turn dear." Dad says.

"Right." Mom says back.

Mom walked up to our house and pointed her hand at it's exterior. A gentle glow began engulfing the entirety of the Arc estate. Once everything that could be considered Arc property was covered, it all blinked out of existence, the ground shook as dirt sunk into what used to be the basement.

Dad sees my amazement and whispers into my ear. "It's her semblance."

"What kind of semblance is that!?" I whisper back.

"She called it kidnapping." Dad whispers to me once more.

"Kidnapping!?"

"Yeah, she can store objects in a pocket dimension of sorts and can take them out again at will. When we attended Beacon, she used it on me before initiation to ensure that we were partners." Dad whispered as he shivered in fear.

Note to self, don't piss mom off.

"Well I think we should be going." Mom says.

"Where are we going mommy?" Violet asks.

"Well we can't stay here anymore jellybean, I already stored the house. So were going to head to Beacon early." Mom says.

Though mom tried to play it off as a lapse in judgement, it was plain as day that she had her own agenda.

* * *

(Time-skip.)

(Pov: Ruby Rose.)

I was currently hunting down Roman Torchwick. It was super exhilarating to play the part of heroine! To think that I left home to just get the newest release of weaponry weekly. I never could have imagined that I would be going toe to toe with a renowned criminal.

It all started when I was browsing the vast selection of treasures. I had my headphones in, just listening to some tunes, when suddenly a bad guy tried to mug me. Then after showing off my sick skills the bad guys were all like 'Noo! Don't hurt me!', 'How can we beat such a heroic lady!' or 'It's impossible guys, she drinks milk!'.

But then the big boss bad guy came in was all like 'Ha! I drink milk too!'. Then he shot at me with his cane and was trying to escape. But I, the great and powerful reaper of calcium, was not having it.

Using my semblance I flew upwards and landed on the rooftop where Roman was.

"Give it up Torchwick!" I shouted in my most heroic voice.

Roman laughs at my face before saying. "Look here little red, I'm a hard working man who's still in his prime. I can't let someone who hasn't even matured take me down, it would destroy my pride. Besides, is it really a crime to do your job properly?"

"Crime doesn't pay Torchwick!" I shout while aiming my baby at the villainous foe. (In hindsight this line is awful if you don't have context.)

Roman pulls out a stack of money and fans it for me to see. "I beg to differ."

I grit my teeth. 'To think the first boss would be an arrogant villain!'

Before I was able to act, a bullhead rose from the edge of the rooftop. Roman walked onto the ship and gave me a curt bow. Then he pulled out a red dust crystal and threw it my way before aiming his gun at me.

"Adios kid!" Roman said before firing his cane.

I braced myself for the impact but only heard an explosion. I felt no pain which was odd, even if I had aura an explosion should hurt shouldn't it? I looked up to see the back of a huntress with a purple cape, a giant rune thing appearing in front of her.

"Shit! We got a huntress!" Roman shouted to his pilot.

Seconds later Roman ran to the front of the bullhead and was replaced by a shadow covered figure with glowing markings. Suddenly, flames burst out from the ground and caused me and the huntress to dodge the inferno.

I watched from the sidelines as the huntress battled the shadowed villain. It was super cool! The pyromancer vs the witch, totally sounds like a movie title! But while I was fangirling, I failed to notice a man with in horribly damaged armor and a missing arm had appeared.

When I looked at the man, I thought he was a pedestrian turned victim. But something stopped me from warning him. I'm not sure what it was but I swore that heard a tiny voice mumbling something.

"_The witch who brought innocents to their knees...a robin hood who's reduced to common crook."_

I couldn't make sense of it. My thoughts were halted when the man raised his hand into the air. This action drew the attention of the two combatants. The man's smile became more apparent as the spotlight fell onto him.

In a single yet swift motion, his body folded seemed to fold itself as he leaned back. "Fall victim to my lullaby!"

The air around him began to distort as his aura became visible. It's bright white color made him look like a holy figure who descended from a higher plane of existence. That was what it resembles before it began convulsing, beating like a heart. Every beat added black to the mixture of aura and before long, we were all engulfed.

I've experienced a lot of things. Good things like getting a puppy for Christmas. Bad things like finding out Yang had thrown my comic away. Scary things like the moans that came from mom and dad's room throughout my childhood. But never have I experienced something quite like this.

Screams, metal hitting metal, explosions, crying, pained yelps, yelling. All of these awful sounds met my eardrums and yet I felt indifferent to it all. I saw images of people being stabbed, two even looked like yang and mom and yet I felt no pity. I smelled blood, sweat, sulfur, ash and yet it felt natural to breath. I felt pain, hunger, broken and tired yet felt well enough to stand strong.

For a while I pondered the many possibilities for why this may be. Maybe I was a freak who liked this stuff, maybe I was knew they weren't real. But I finally decided on my reason for it. In the background of it all, something was drawing me closer.

The agony my body felt was nothing compared to the cool breath on my skin. The rancid smells were drowned out by the lovely smell of pie. The previous sights from the past were covered by the images of a sun falling on the horizon as it shined a light to my destination. The wails of despair were silenced as the hums of a mother sounded through the vast fields.

For all the struggles I felt before were insignificant. The only thing that mattered now was the woman in front of me. Her black robe and platinum hair was all I could see of her as she set plates of deserts on a picnic table for two. She appeared to sense me as a moment later she turned around and revealed her white skin.

"Your back?" The woman asked with surprise. "I really thought you wouldn't keep your promise."

Then in a voice that wasn't my own I said. "An Arc's word is law to them."

Then everything went black, my consciousness fading as the sound of rhythmic bells sounded through my very soul.

* * *

(Time-skip.)

(Pov: Jaune.)

You don't know how angry I am right now. Let me explain why I'm so pissed off before I decide it's a good idea to have a tantrum.

We made it to Beacon a few days ago and got to see the headmaster of Beacon. I asked him where I needed to go to do my applicant exam, an exam for those without transcripts. However Ozpin said that it was already taken care of it which puzzled me.

After I was done my business it was time for my mom and dad to take the wheel. Unlike my chat with Ozpin, the calm headmaster seemed to be filled with dread. We were directed to an empty plot of the schools grounds and left with only the words 'Do what you must.' before Ozpin left. It became ever so clear me that my parents had blackmailed the headmaster.

However that wasn't where everything turned sour for me. The downhill slope of depression started after I went to Vale. I was told to pick things up for dinner while they got the house 'set up', giving me plenty of time to gather my thoughts.

Now by this point it should be no surprise that I was worried. Ditto had worked me to the bone to prepare me for this life of a huntsman. It made me concerned about how difficult being a hunter actually is. What kind of danger lurks in our world that requires the knowledge needed to make warships self destruct at a distance?

The biggest fear was about my strength. I didn't know how strong I actually was or if I was even considered strong. The only people I have fought is dad and Ditto after all. This has been a issue that I've had throughout my training. So I thought that after my training I would be able to properly test my strength against some Grimm.

No such luck. As soon as I beat Ditto I was brought to my home after I fell unconscious. When I tried to leave afterwards, Violets clingy nature made me realize that staying at home was more important. Then, once we got to Beacon I asked the headmaster if I could fight some Grimm in the emerald forest but was declined because the only people allowed to enter was students and staff.

Needless to say, it was agonizing for me to be left in the dark. It's why I prayed to get into some trouble in Vale. It didn't matter if my opponent was a Grimm or person, I just needed to know!

When I found out that a heist was going down I was filled with joy, my lack of confidence would finally be purged! Or so I thought. Just as I was about to join the fray, Ditto appeared before me and knocked me out!

When I woke up, I was in a hotel room with a note stuck to my face. The note read 'Nice try!' followed by details regarding my current situation. Ditto's note went on to say he had upgraded my armor and had made another weapon for me to use.

Damn you Ditto! First you turn my sword and shield into weapons of mass destruction and now I have yet another weapon and armor that's probably a weapon as well. When will you stop Ditto!? When will your destructive tools cease to exist!?

It made my fears grow exponentially. More weapons and armor doesn't breed the feeling of safety, it makes you terrified of why you need it!

Well that didn't matter right now. I was on my way back to Beacon with the rest of the students attending initiation. If I was how I was before, my motion sickness would have kicked in, but thanks to Ditto that's been quelled. Now I can just sit and relax until initiation. Yes, being able to rest is a godsend.

"I can't believe my little sister is going to Beacon with me!" A voice said.

"Please stop!" Another voice begged.

I looked over and saw a girl in brown clothes and blonde hair hugging a black haired girl who wore a gothic styled dress within an inch of her life.

"But I'm so proud of you!" The blonde said with pride.

"Really sis, it was nothing." The black haired girl said shyly.

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone at Beacon is going to think you're the bee's knees." The blonde girl said.

The girl in black and red shook her head in frustration. "But I don't want to be the bee's knees, okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees. I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees."

Knees...Ditto kneed me in the face to knock me out...now I'm angry again. I broke out of my stupor and began eavesdropping again, finding that there discussion and changed course. It went from a big sister boosting her little sisters confidence to a little sister bringing herself down.

"Besides, I don't feel like I did anything." The little sister said.

"What are you talking about sis? The way you beat up those thugs was amazing." The older sister retorted.

"Yeah but I didn't catch Roman in the end. I also had to be saved from an explosion by a huntress." The one in a skirt complained.

"I don't think anyone's gonna say you don't belong here just because you were saved from an explosion." The one in shorts replied.

"But-"

"No butts missy, those are for sitting on."

After awhile I decided I was done invading their privacy and wished to have a nice nap. Letting the slow rock of the ship lull me to sleep.

* * *

(Time-skip.)

(Pov: Ruby.)

I was not having a good day. First thing that happens after I get off the bullhead, Yang leaves me to go hang out with her friends. Why did she do that!? She knows how awkward I am with people so why would she betray me like this! It's blasphemy I say, blasphemy!

She even did it when I was swooning over weapons, which she knows is my weakness. To make the matter worse, I had no clue where to go. When I tried ask Yang for information I fell over another girl's luggage.

"What are you doing!?" The girl said.

"Uh, sorry!" I say in a panic.

"Sorry!? Do you understand the damage you could have caused!?" The girl shouted with irritation.

I try to string together words while I picked up her case. "Uuhhhh…"

"Give me that!" The girl snatched the case out of my hand.

"This is dust, mined and purified in a Schnee quarry!" The agitated girl explains.

The words I was trying to string together became harder to say. "Uuuhhhh…"

"What are you, brain-dead? Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!" The white haired girl said, anger growing each passing second.

"I...I know…" I struggle to say as the dust enters my lungs.

"Are you even listening? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself!?" The scary girl continues.

Then, when I thought everything couldn't get worse, I sneezed. A flash of ice, flame and lightning came together in a beautiful, yet deadly combination. It was like mother nature took care of an orphan for their entire life and they peed on her face while she slept. Needless to say mother nature was very, very, very cross.

The girl I was talking to had changed into a nice black colored without me noticing. She also wore the same expression that Yang wears when she loses over and over in video game matches.

"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" The girl in white says in pure anger.

"I'm really, really sorry!" I say with embarrassment.

"Ugh, you complete dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?" She asks, the question sounding rhetorical.

"Well, I-I..."

"This isn't your ordinary combat school. It's not just sparring and practice, you know! We're here to fight monsters, so... watch where you're going!" She rudely states.

"Hey, I said I was sorry, princess!" I say back.

"Wow, there's a princess here?" A male voice asked.

Me and the bully looked to the side. The voice belonged to a boy-man-guy with armor covering his upper torso and the entirety of his limbs. Underneath his protected exterior was a hoodie and jeans, the latter only being visible due to the lack of armor in his groin area. His hair was the same color as Yang's but was wild and went all over the place.

"Well if I'm in the presence of a princess then I suppose I should show respect. But who to bow to? Both areas radiant as the sun so how do I tell? Oh well, guess I'll bow to both of the lovely ladies." The guy said smoothly.

I couldn't contain my blush. Never been mistaken for a princess before, nor have I been called a lovely lady.

"Oh great, another dolt." The meany said with disgust.

"Whoa there frosty, just saying hi. What crawled up your throne to make you so mad?" The boy asked.

The girl then pointed my way before saying. "This brat over hear! She tripped over my luggage and became star struck at the mere sight of my case of dust. Then, whilst I was was educating the igit, she set off the dust and caused an explosion! How a brat like her got into Beacon is beyond me. If she can't be trusted around dust someone else is holding then how is she going to fight the Grimm?"

Each word hit me like shrapnel. I looked away depressed as I began rubbing my arm. Then the wicked witch of the north changed targets.

"Now I have to deal with a scraggly hood-rat who looks like a homeless buffoon. And 'princess'? Get your empty head straight and separate fantasy from reality. Geez, if I was in charge you two would be sent right back to kindergarten, maybe then you'll both know how to mature." The girl said with a huff.

I looked at the boy to see his reaction to all of this. I expected to see anger or even sorrow. Instead we were greeted by the look of shock followed by a look of disbelief.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have better things to do." The girl in white said as she began seeing her way out.

She was stopped however by the strong, firm voice of the boy she berated. "Alright listen here you blue blooded bitch."

She was just as shocked as me to hear those words come from his mouth. He didn't sound or look like he would curse.

Her anger ignited once more. "Excuse me!? Do you have any idea who you're talking too!?"

"Weiss Schnee; left-handed, 5'3' in height, heiress of the Schnee dust company." He said instantly.

"So your a stalker? I knew just by looking at you that you were a degenerate but a pervert as well? Our world has no future if people like you ar-" She ranted before getting cut off.

"I know your name and affiliation because I read about it. Your height and hand preference were calculations I made. However in the end it's pointless information." He said apathetically.

"W-" The girl named Weiss tried to speak again but was cut off once more.

"Name, rank, gender, race, serial number; doesn't matter what you are or what you have. As soon as you become a hunter of the beasts of destruction you must learn to see the bigger picture. All that you are and all that you have can be stripped away at any moment. Stop using your prestige as a crutch you entitled toddler." The boy states.

The silence afterwards was deafening. Weiss had begun lagging, moving bits at a time before halting for a few more seconds. I was bracing for the coming of the Schnee armageddon.

But the boy held his position and added one final thing. "But by all means, flaunt around your title. Don't rest until every faunus in school knows your going to be the one to take over the family business of sending their people into caves that may not may not collapse. Tell every teen who was poor, orphaned and had to live on the street as a child how you have trouble sorting all the gifts you get at parties. And be sure to tell every person your better than them, it definitely helps insure the safety of Remnant."

Weiss had went from lagging to completely frozen in place, her mouth agape. While I was ogling her, the boy grabbed me by the hand and pulled me to a secluded area. If I wasn't as shocked as the meany Schnee, I would have been extraordinarily flustered.

* * *

(Pov: Jaune.)

I finally found out the reason for Ditto's hate for Schnees. I even lost my cool and swore, which is regrettable since I wanted to seem like a good samaritan. Oh well, what's done is done.

I look over to the girl I dragged along. "You OK over there?"

The girl in question looked disheartened. "Yeah, just contemplating life." She sarcastically said.

"What parts of life?" I ask.

"The aspects of my existence and my destiny to be friendless." She said bluntly.

"I think your doing all right." I console.

"But I just got here half an hour ago and have already made a negative friend!" She cries with dismay.

"Negatives can be canceled out by positives. Plus if you squint and look at an angle, you could consider me two friends." I say.

She stops her self loathing for a second and stares at me. "You think of me as your friend?"

I give a small chuckle. "No, at least not yet. Gotta know your name first."

She chuckles back and holds out her hand. "Ruby Rose."

I grasp her hand and shake it with enthusiasm. "Jaune Arc."

Suddenly, pain shot up my arm and made me pull back. As I held my arm, something began wriggling inside of my aura reserves, like something had woken up.

"Are you OK!?" Ruby said with worry.

"Yup, guess my entire arm just cramped." I lie.

Ruby looked at me with an unsure look. "Alright...but if your in pain you should get it checked out. I don't want my best buddy to kick the bucket before we start the initiation."

I don't think people die from arm cramps. And what do you mean best buddy? Didn't we just meet?

Ruby then pulls out a rifle from behind her back and presented it to me with eyes full expectation.

"This is my baby Crescent Rose, made it myself. Bet you can't guess what it turns into~go on, guess." She said with a smug smirk.

I hold the weapon in my hands and rack my brain for a good answer. "It's definitely a sniper rifle but I also know it's something more. I want to say...maybe a scythe? It's either that or an axe or halberd but I feel that you're not an axe or halberd kind of girl, are you?"

Ruby's eyes glowed as she bounced with excitement. "Wow, your good at guessing!"

"The signs were all there, I just needed to put it together so I could see the bigger picture." I explain.

"Now that you mention it, you did the same to that Wess person." Ruby recalled.

"Better not call her 'Wess', she'll yell at you again for getting her name wrong." I joke.

"But how did you do it? I mean what were the signs?" She asks.

I smile and tell her my evidence.

"Firstly, I saw that your weapon has rotating mechanisms, meaning the weapon would unfold by rotating, giving it a curve." My words made Ruby nod.

"Second, thanks to my previous observation, I was able to assume that the part that extends outwards is probably a handle." Another nod was given.

"Third, the feel of your hands suggests that you swing your weapon a lot, which lowers the amount of weapons it can be considerably." Ruby shyly nodded at this, probably because I mentioned holding her hands.

"Then we have the situation on weight." Those words caused the rose's thorns to strike out.

"I'm not fat!" Ruby shouted.

I quickly waved my hands to fix the situation. "Never said you were. I'm talking about your weight vs your weapon's. Your weapon feels heavy, heavier than you are. That weight would mostly me put on the end of the weapons handle. Leaving the scythe and hammer as my options."

"Then how did you decide between the two?" She asks.

"That's where your weight comes into play. If I subtract your weight from when I dragged you around by the weight of your weapon to get your weight. Your weight shows that you have only a bit of muscle and mainly focus on agility instead of power. I don't mean to say that you're weak, just that you would probably require a weapon that slashes through enemies instead of bludgeoning them." I explain.

"Objection!" Ruby shouts with a pointed finger. "You bring up good points but there's one issue. The weapon could have totally been a naginata!"

"True, but considering the expert craftsmanship of the weapon I highly doubt it. You would lose the ability to fire it when in it's weapon form and there is no way for the weapon to gain an edge needed to act like naginata. If it was a naginata then I'd have some concerns with the manufacturer." I rant, not noticing how close Ruby had gotten to me.

I was broken out of my stupor by Ruby, who was tugging on my shirt. "Are you the holy gun god?"

"No."

"But how did you gather all of that in such a short amount of time!?" Ruby shouted in bewilderment.

"Please, I'm not that impressive. If my teacher did it then he would be able to tell you a bunch more, like the ammo it uses, future improvements, etc." I humbly say.

"Well it's a pretty neat trick, though I personally prefer hearing the weapon specs from the source. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge." Ruby's replies, hinting at her desire to see my weapon.

I chuckle before pulling out my prized heirloom. "This is Crocea Mors, a hand-me-down weapon that has been modified over the years."

The gothic huntress's eyes gleamed. "Oooo, a classic turned modern, neato!"

"It's a sword and shield combo as you can see though it has a ton of new features." I say.

"Can I hold it?" Ruby asks.

I nod. "Sure."

She lovingly caressed my weapon and pulled it out of its sheath, the gold and silver blinding me as it reflected the sun.

Originally the weapon was very simple but as I said before, it's quite different now.

The shield was now far thicker in its sheath form now and had openings that allowed me to insert ammunition. The shield form extended to it's normal size but had the ability to double the size with the click of the first button. The second button fires 'pin missiles', pins the size of an index finger but pack an explosive punch, out of the face of the shield. While tiny missiles sound dangerous, it certainly doesn't sound as bad as the saw that activates with the final button.

Then you got the sword. It, like the shield, has kept its original size but can double the blade length with the push of a button. The blade also splits down the middle and reveals the gun barrel hidden at the base of the sword. This makes for a deadly combo, allowing me to fire mid swing while also giving me the option to catch and clamp weapons that get caught in the split.

Both weapons sound spooky, but the real danger lies in there dust casting capabilities. The shield can encase itself in the dust I equip it with and the sword can create elemental effects for the bullets and blade through the same method. Why do I need all this? Who knows, I certainly don't.

"Wow, look at all of this! I've seen so many cool weapons, all with different quirks and oddities but this weapon is something else. It looks like it came from Atlas with how advanced the mechanisms are." Ruby gushed over my weapon.

"Well my teacher has always been quite good with his tools, made my armor too." I say.

Wiping drool from her lips, Ruby turned to me and directed her attention to my armor. "Is your armor a weapon too!?"

I scratch my head. "Probably. It was only a few days ago that my armor only consisted of gauntlets and a chest-plate. All this extra stuff is new and there is a good chance it's been weaponized too."

"Awesome! Man is Yang going to be jealous. Not only did I make a cool friend, said cool friend has weapons galore!" Ruby shouts with glee.

I chuckle before asking an important question. "Do you know where we're going?"

Ruby freezes up. "I was following you…"

I laugh at this. "Likewise, well let's use some detective skills and figure out where to go."

With that, our education begins.

* * *

**Hoo boy that was rough. I did a bunch of revisions for the chapter and realized just how bad my spelling sucks when sleep deprived. With how much crap I'm going through it's been kinda hard to get many things out for all to see so I've decided to make a schedule of sorts. **

**I put my fanfic names into a randomizer and let it do it's magic, the end result says that the next fanfic upload will be for "Hidden World" so if your interested then you should check it out once it's done. **

**As for this fanfic's next upload, the next upload is near the end of my scheduled sorry to say. But never fear readers, you see when I put my fanfics into the randomizer I actually ended up putting multiple of the same fanfic, depending on the fanfics popularity. So while it's true you'll have to wait awhile, the next upload will be followed by another upload. **

**Remember to leave a complement, criticism or question and please hold out until the next upload, Spiffy.**

**(P.S. If the chapter has too many issues or there are pressing problems then let me know.)**


	8. Grad bonus! Behind the scenes

**Hey guys, Spiffy here. I wanted to say thanks to the people who have been following this story, my most popular story after coming back to fanfiction. I have some news for you to explain my sudden disappearance and the future of my fanfiction creations. **

**My recent disappearance is due to a certain event that teenagers who go to school usually go thru, the event being my graduation ceremony. From planning, practicing, dressing up, doing the ceremony, visiting branching family, exams that happen after for some reason and everything after that, I've been quite busy. Long story short I'm officially a grown'd-up man-child after this week, yay!**

**However, you may have already put two and two together but this is going to affect my uploads greatly. I will no longer have access to my school's computers, I'll probably not have access to this shitty windows 7 computer in the future and may be even more busy with college and job stuff. However, I'll do what I can to get you uploads, just don't expect them to be frequent.**

**With this in mind, I should also answer the questions some might be thinking now.**

**Q: How long does 'frequently' mean?**

**A: Every 1-4 weeks.**

**Q: If Spiffy can't upload frequently will we be getting a bunch of uploads to make up for it? **

**A: Probably not, you'll for sure get one upload though.**

**Q: If Spiffy is only going to do 1 upload 1-4 weeks then will this/the other fanfics get canned?**

**A: Nope, in fact that's the next thing to talk about.**

**After some careful consideration of my readers habits, I realized that some of you may not look at my other fanfics. This means you haven't seen my list of uploads and crap. So I decided to make an account on discord to talk with you guys/girls about my fanfictions and stuff. The link is here [**** /UnSzdT****].**

**With that out of the way, lets see whats in the box of reviews!**

**Eragon1928374655: Pretty much. Thanks to Ditto, Jaune always analyzes everything he looks at, from a person's body to potential weapons. This also happens when he doesn't want it too. As for my name, my nickname has always been Spiffy and along the lines I came up with Spiffydescalchop because it rolled off the tongue.**

**HBgamer111: Thanks for the compliment.**

**proiu: Thank you for the compliment as well, I'll be sure to get the chapter done as soon as possible.**

**Xhope14x: You know what buddy? I fully agree with your problems. Not gonna lie, I knew it wasn't the most focused chapter and I'd probably go back and deal with some of the issues that I personally had with it. When I was writing it, I had to deal with a 'Tony'. Tony's are people who your good friends with and hang out with a lot. But when your on one side of a table doing work(Fanfictions in my case) they are on the other side looking at memes. Then when they find something funny, they interrupt your train of thought with a giggle followed by them showing you their phone in such a way you need to lean in and squint!...Sorry about that. Long story short I'll make the chapter better with the next upload.**

**death'sgodson1224-DGS: Another compliment, thank you very much.**

**Guest: I share the same thoughts on Weiss buddy. That's why I'm gonna have Ditto mess with her and then have Jaune comfort her. But for Blake...well...I calculated this part. If Jaune wasn't throwing up on the ship then he would meet up with Ruby earlier, that means he would end up being the one to confront Weiss before Blake would and Blake, like most introvert-esc characters, try to avoid two people yelling at each other, at least in my opinion.**

**Now what kind of author would I be if I updated without any real story?**

* * *

(Location: Beacon Academy.)

(Time: Just before vol 1.)

(POV: Glynda Goodwitch.)

My name is Glynda Goodwitch and really want my job to be over. Every single day I have to deal with Ozpin's paperwork, deal with troublemakers and fight for my right to eat my food that I made a day prior, and that's just the morning. After that I have to deal with property damage, ungrateful brats, idiotic stunts I wish were performed by only the students, marking homework and the looming threat of total annihilation!

Despite the negatives of my job, I love it dearly. There isn't a day that goes by where I have to hide my smile because an underdog student succeeded. Or when a team comes back from a successful mission. It's just...all I want to do go back to the good ol days; where Grimm were thought to be mindless, where love could happen anywhere, where I could continue to increase the amount of cat photos in my special folder.

But alas, today is another reminder that life isn't easy. While I was making my rounds during lunch period I came across a strange man. He had only one arm and was covered head to toe in armor that was horribly chipped and missing segments. This man was currently peeking through a door to the female students change room. Obviously I couldn't let that stand. So I marched over to the ingrates location. The ingrate in question was mumbling words that I could barely make out.

I think he said. "Something, something, bunny bitch."

So called out to him. "What do you think your doing!?"

He turned to me, almost like he was expecting to be caught. But when he saw my face he jumped back in fear. "I thought you were dead!?"

Peeved I began clenching my fist and said. "I'm not that old trespasser."

Whether it was my words or because he was able to see my face clearly, he noticeably calmed down. He combed his hand threw his fingers and sighed with relief. Looking back to me once he was done calming down.

"Sorry, you reminded me of someone I knew." He said.

Catching the past tense part of his words I also sighed. "Sorry to hear that Mr…"

"Ditto."

" . But that won't excuse you from your punishment you'll be receiving for your perverse acts." I said sternly.

He smiled. "Does that mean I get to speak with Ozpin?"

"No, you shall be dealt with by my own hands." I answered.

Ditto frowned at this. "But I got to talk with Ozpin. If you aren't going to take me to him, then I'll go on my own." He said before walking to Ozpin's office.

As he was walking off, I sighed again as I pulled out my riding crop. With a flick of my wrist he flew to the wall and slammed into it back first. I walked over to him until I caught up to him and turned so we were face to face.

"And what pray tell is so important that you need to tell Ozpin in person?" I asked.

"Something secret." He replied.

"Secrets can lead to issues. Especially when your put on trial." I point out.

"Amazing news but I want to speak to someone qualified." He said.

"And the deputy of Beacon/Ozpin's right hand isn't qualified?" I asked with slight annoyance.

"Let's just say he's the only one qualified." Ditto said.

More annoyed than before I ask. "How is he qualified?"

The man shrugged on the wall. "Effort mostly."

I gave him a deadpan stare. "Right." I sarcastically said.

"May I ask you a question now?" Ditto asks.

I decided to humor the man, not like he was going anywhere. "Sure, I don't see why not."

He smiled smugly. "Before I was thrown to the wall, what did all of my previous sentences start with?"

The question puzzled me for a second as it had nothing to do with the previous discussion. But I did say I'd humor him.

"Something secret." "Amazing news but I want to speak to someone qualified." "Let's just say he's the only one qualified." "Effort mostly."

"**S**omething secret."

"**A**mazing news but I want to speak to someone qualified."

"**L**et's just say he's the only one qualified."

"**E**ffort mostly."

'Sale?' I thought. What significant about the word 'sale'? Unless he also meant the sentence where he asked the question.

"**S**omething secret."

"**A**mazing news but I want to speak to someone qualified."

"**L**et's just say he's the only one qualified."

"**E**ffort mostly."

"**M**ay I ask you a question now?"

"Salem?...!" Suddenly my eyes shot up to the mans stuck form to see him smirk with a savage smile.

Before I was able to act, my aura broke and he became free. Ditto then kneed me in the face, knocking me out. When I came to, I was in the medical ward with Ozpin at the side of my bed. He sipped his cocoa before realizing that I was awake.

"It's not everyday a student is able to take you down Glynda." He said with a chuckle.

I sighed as I sat up. "It wasn't a student Ozpin."

He raised a brow at this. "I hardly think a group would matter against your semblance."

"I mean that my assailant wasn't from Beacon." I corrected.

He looked down for a bit before looking back to me. "Do you need anything?"

"I need you to call the inner circle."

* * *

(Timeskip.)

We were gathered in Ozpin's office. Ozpin was in his desk with his cup in hand, Qrow was also here with his own beverage, I was at Ozpin's side glaring Qrow down and the rest of the headmasters were seen on the screen in front of Ozpin.

"What do you mean there has been a breach!?" James yelled.

"I said that we wouldn't continue until we're all here James. Our fellow headmaster of Shade has yet to-" Ozpin said calmly.

"We don't have all day Oz. If Salem's operatives are truly in the Beacon then we need to double security, in all our schools." James stated.

"Agreed, think of the children Oz. How will the populace feel if the place where Remnants next protectors are trained can't even protect themselves? Not only would we become a laughing stock, but the fear created from the news would make defending the academies even harder." Lionhart voiced.

"I don't know about you Oz but I think it's a terrible idea. Didn't anyone ever teach you not to show weakness Ironprick? Sure, we would have more defense but it also shows Salem that were on edge." The raspy voice of Qrow retorted.

James sighed before speaking again. "Then we-"

"I believe there is good points being made here. The best one being Lionhart's." Ozpin interrupted.

Qrow gave him a funny look. "Oz?"

Ironwood beamed. "Then you agree that we should-"

James was cut off again by Ozpin. "Which is why increasing defenses is the worst move to make right now."

"But-"

"James, doubling our defenses does stop unwanted guests from approaching. But this is a delicate and secretive matter, nobody knows of Salem's existence, if they did know then this would be the perfect move. However, because the populace doesn't know, we must make everything seem alright. Suddenly increasing security now would cause panic to form in the people." Ozpin carefully explained.

"Ozzy's right. If someone felt safe in a place and then suddenly a bunch of security showed up, then they'd begin doubting if the place was ever safe to begin with."

"That's how I fe-" As I was about agree with the voice, I find it oddly familiar.

Looking to the elevator, I saw the same man who escaped my grasp before standing there. His hand moved to his hip as he drew his rusted sword. Before I could react, Qrow lunged at him and swung his sword downward. The man did a spin to dodge and elbowed Qrow in the face, throwing the sword once Qrow was out of the way. It went straight for Ozpin and by reflex I caught it before it hit Ozpin but not before the sword destroyed the holoscreen.

Ozpin took a sip of his cocoa, unfazed by the blade in front of him. "It would have only grazed me Glynda."

I glared at him with disbelief before turning my glare to the assassin. "You! For one of Salem's lackeys you sure are foolish."

After finishing my sentence, Qrow got back up and held his blade to his neck. "Gotta agree with miss 'crop up the ass' over here pal. You'd think a pawn of the queen would be smarter."

"Well I couldn't just let those idiots overlook one big problem with their 'solution'." The man said.

"And what may that what may that be ? What did they overlook to make you blow your cover and faux attack me?" Ozpin asked.

Ditto put his hand to his chin. "Well, for people who are so concerned with infiltration, they forgot one big part of their plan. Unless your rich and live in Atlas, people need to recruit new security. Said recruits can easily be replaced by the ones your at war with or just be people your at war with. Makes the whole point of security useless and hypocritical."

Ozpin nods his head. "How very right you are . Now from what I've heard, you wish to speak with me. But before that, may we ask you a few questions?"

"Ask away." Ditto said.

I took this chance to ask a question of my own. "How did you get here without anyone noticing?"

"I used the elevator." He answered.

"I mean on school grounds?" I asked with more detail.

"Used the front door." He answered again.

"Why did the pilots-" I was about to ask before being interrupted.

"Now Glynda, while I do like to answer your continuous and pointless questions. I think the other kids want a turn." Ditto quipped while gesturing to Qrow and Ozpin.

Qrow waved his offer away while stifling a chuckle. "Nah, don't mind me. I for one am enjoying this."

I glared at him which only broke the floodgates of laughter he was suppressing. Ozpin silenced us both with his question. "Do you work for Salem?"

"If I was, I sure wouldn't be here to ask for a favor." The man replied.

Ozpin raised a brow. "Oh, you want a favor? What might this favor entail?"

"Well that...needs some context and some privacy." He said while rubbing the back of his head.

After a few seconds passed, Ozpin said. "Very well."

"Ozpin!?" I ask with a startled tone.

"They don't need to leave now. They can listen to the context all they want, they'll hear it sooner or later. The request itself is private because it's half personal and half something you wouldn't care about anyways. So please stay seated and let me make a fool of myself." Ditto explains.

We sit down and prepare ourselves for whatever he's about to say, keeping our weapons out just in case. "Now let's not sugar coat shit. The world you live in is fucked. Something big is about to happen and from what I'm told, it's going to change the world for the worst."

"You don't mean Salem, do you?" Ozpin asks.

Ditto shrugs. "Who knows? All I know is that I wouldn't be here if it wasn't an issue you can solve on your own."

"Care to elaborate?" Ozpin asks.

"Well that's where this blows the craziest thing you've heard out of the ballpark. I'm from the future." Ditto boldly states, causing a deafening silence.

Qrow is the first to break the silence. "He must be drunker than me."

"You can't be serious? That's improbable!?" I shout.

"Now, now, you two. This situation is similar to when I told you about the existence of Salem and magic. In truth, I'm as skeptical as you are but as long as he has evidence I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Which should be easy if he's from the future, he should have plenty of evidence at his disposal to convince us after all. Future event's to be exact." Ozpin point's out.

We all look to Ditto for said evidence. "You'd be right to think that. But it isn't as easy as you think. You see, in order to come to the past I had to make a deal with a god named Chronos. This deal put me on a very short leash and makes it possible to tamper with the future without permission. The reason for this is to stop me from messing with the flow of time."

"So what your saying is you don't have evidence and cultist has you by the balls?" Qrow sarcastically asks.

"Oh I have evidence. Just gotta give you context for the context. The way Chronos has stopped me from changing the future isn't by giving me a list of 'do's and don'ts'. He's placed a curse on me to ensure I don't slip up accidentally or do something stupid. Having knowledge of the future is great but changing the past too much will have dire consequences." Ditto takes a deep breath before continuing. "For example; say a soldier dies in battle and their death not only increases troop moral but also gives the army support from another country and sparks an increase in new recruits, thus winning them the war. But if someone warns this soldier of their death and how they die. The soldier, because of the knowledge, avoids death and in turn, stopping the moral, recruit and support from happening."

"So that means any information you gave us as evidence has a chance of losing it's worth as soon as we know it?" I question.

"Yup." He responds.

"Then why bother telling us this in the first place? Why are you even here if you can't change the future you seek to change!? Wouldn't your very existence change the future!?" I question further.

"Missy please, anything I do either won't do shit to the future or is allowed by my boss. If I try to touch something I'm not allowed to, the curse will proc and cause me to faze right through. If I try to say something I'm not allowed to, the curse will proc and make it seem like I said nothing at all. This stops me from changing things Chronos doesn't want to change. Therefore, any action I do, including speaking to you, is allowed by him." He replies.

Irritated, I stood up and vocalized me views. "What gives him the right to say what changes and what doesn't!?"

He gave me an odd look, like I had said something stupid. "He's the 'God of Time' Glynda. He can, you know, control time itself. He has the ability to see the future, or more accurately, the ability to see the consequences of actions. With an ability like that, why wouldn't he have the right? Especially when his end goal saves tour world in the end."

I was about to retaliate, but Qrow decided to butt in himself. "Can we take a step back please? My interest has been piqued by this 'curse' of yours."

Ozpin nods in agreement. "Mine as well. You've been very careful with the information given so far, which is to be expected, but what purpose does revealing your curse have?"

Ditto smiles at Ozpin's observation. "The reason I brought it up is because it's my evidence."

"How so?" Qrow asks.

"Well as much as I'd love to touch everything in Ozzy's office, I think that activating the curse through words would be better. You see, the curse doesn't stop me from talking, it stops me from saying things that could change the course of history. A lie, a truth or a compliment; if it can cause a huge change in the future then the curse will prock. But there is an odd little quirk to it. Say I tell someone a secret of their friends, said secret that could sever their friendship, the person I'm telling won't think I said anything, but their friend who knew the secret initially will hear me say it." Ditto says.

"So if you say something one of us knows-" I start.

"Then one, if not, all of us won't hear it." Qrow finishes.

Ditto gives us a smile and a nod before crossing his arms. Qrow and I look to Ozpin, finding him take a large swig of his cocoa before setting it down beside him. Hands clasped together, he stared into Ditto's eyes.

"Well go on then." Ozpin commanded.

To me, Ditto appeared to walk around in circles with a contemptuous face before spinning to face Ozpin again. I would have thought he was messing with us if I didn't see Ozpin's face contorted with shock. Seconds later, he began to stare blankly at his work in front of him.

I walked over to Ozpin and put a hand on his shoulder. "Ozpin?"

Ozpin sighed as he pushed up his glasses. "That...that is indeed proof of your claims, ."

Qrow speaks up. "Whoa there Oz. How do we know he isn't using his semblance to mess with your mind?"

"Because semblances that affect minds require the user to know what their creating. And the words he said to me haven't been said to me for thousands of years. It's something that only Salem and myself know." Ozpin says with conviction.

I grimace. "With all due respect Ozpin. If you and Salem are the only ones who know, she could easily have-"

"Salem wouldn't tell anyone what he told me. Besides, I could tell he wasn't hostile from the beginning. You could even say I had a gut feeling that he wasn't an underling of Salem." Ozpin states.

"Well one of you is convinced. Maybe I should tell them about your dustube cosplay streams ." Ditto threatened.

"W-wha!-?" I sputtered with wide eyes.

"I haven't seen her make a face like that before." Ozpin says.

"What'd he say to make you flustered Glynda?" Qrow asks me.

"N-nothing at all!" I defended with a panic.

"Maybe he isn't spouting bullshit. What kind of dark secret did terminator over there say? Could it be a student-teacher relationship!?" Qrow teased.

While Qrow was laughing like an idiot, Ditto turned to him. Like Ozpin, Qrow's face changed instantly. But Qrow's face was one of embarrassments mixed with a deep blush.

"I was young and wanted to experiment alright!" Qrow shouted.

Ozpin and I couldn't help but take advantage of this situation. "And what did he say to you ? Do tell the class." I said with a smirk.

"And I thought Glynda's expression was amusing." Ozpin said with a smirk.

Before we were able to tease Qrow more, a clap got our attention. "Alright guys, that's enough. As fun as it is to see you tear into each other, I still have business with Ozzy over here. So unless you have any more questions, I suggest you two leave and tell James and Leonardo that you're alright. Don't want an Atlas fleet on your doorstep now do you?" Ditto says.

"Speaking of James and Leonardo, if what Oz says is true and you missed on purpose, then your purpose of throwing your sword was to destroy the monitor, right?" Qrow asks.

"Yup."

"Then why did you destroy the monitor? You told us about your future, why couldn't the other headmasters know?" Qrow prods more.

Ditto gives us a blank stare. "Mostly because of Ironwood. Sure, he's a good guy and knows how to run an army. But do you honestly expect me to say, and prove, I'm from the future in front of him? In front of the man who overreacts when endangered and can summon an entire military force with the tickle of his left testicle? I think not."

Nodding at his reasoning, no matter how crude it was put, he was right about Ironwood. James always had his heart in the right place when he acted but always ended up making rash decisions. If he knew what happened in the future, he would save everyone he knew would meet an early end and in turn make the rest of what he knew obsolete. Well, that is only if Ditto's knowledge really does come from the future.

Ditto's claims and their authenticity is something I'm still on the fence about. Ditto did have his 'evidence' to back up his claim but Qrow's concerns have just as much weight. On one hand, he's a prophet warning us of a threat we can't hope to face. On the other hand, he is merely a man using semblances, whether his own or a partners, to force us to believe his claims are true. It leaves a bitter taste in my mouth to be told something while being unable to trust it.

There is one thing I'm certain of though. Ozpin believes him without question. The look in Ozpin's eyes is something I never thought I'd see from Ozpin. Eyes that once held profound wisdom were now ones of trust, companionship and fear. Makes you wonder what Ditto said.

* * *

(Pov: Ozpin.)

"..."

My body was on autopilot.

"_... .~~…"_

After Ditto revealed his way to prove himself.

"_...t.~~e…"_

He had walked over to my desk and from the looks of it, activated his curse.

"_...'.~~i~…"_

It became apparent the curse was in affect when Qrow and Glynda both stared at his previous position.

"_...n.~~d~e…"_

Then he pressed his hands down on my desk and leaned forward, whispering a few choice words.

"_...a.~~ ~i~…"_

Once those words left his lips, I found myself unable to breathe as I began hyperventilating.

"_...c.~~t~d~e…"_

I hid this fact from my companions using my poker face, a skill I've learned over the years.

"_... .~~'~ ~ie…"_

Thoughts of killing the man in front of me surfaced from the confines of my mind. To end him before the truth got out and left me broken and betrayed once more.

"_...m.~~n~t~di~…"_

But I extinguished these thoughts. He himself said that he is incapable of spreading information that will affect the future.

"_...e.~~a~'~ d~e…"_

And from his body language, I could tell he wasn't lying about that fact.

"_..l.~~c~n~t ~ie…"_

If I think about it, this is actually a blessing in disguise.

"_.a.~~ ~a~'t~die…"_

A man from the future, a man with vast knowledge...

"_S.~~m~c~n'~ di~…"_

A man who came to the past to save mankind...

"_.~~e~ ~an~t d~e…"_

A man who came to me for aid…

"_~~l~m~ca~'t ~ie…"_

Despite the despair…

"_~a~e~ c~n't~die…"_

Despair brought from three words…

"_S~l~m ~an'~ die…"_

The simple and undeniable truth that-

"Salem can't die."

"That's what I said." Ditto confirmed.

"...you know of this fact and yet you still persist? People I have told in the past have either defected and joined Salem or fall into despair, making Salem's goals easier to accomplish. What makes you different." I ask.

"I killed her for one. Turns out words aren't shit if proven wrong. Another reason could be the fact the younger me is going to be learning under your guidance." Ditto lists off.

"Ahh. I suppose there would be a younger version of yourself, wouldn't there?"

Ditto smiles, swelling with pride. "Yup. Your gonna love Ozzy. He's courageous, filled with justice and can fight like the entire world depends on it. He was actually the main focus of my first task after coming to the past. Said task was to train him with my future skill and knowledge so he can divert the future calamity."

"And in turn make you stronger, correct?" My words cause Ditto to visibly wince.

Scratching the back of his head, Ditto says. "Well...I'll be honest Oz, I haven't told you the full truth about my origins, it was the part for yourself only." Ditto admitted.

I lean forward in my chair. "I'm all ears."

"While I am from the future, it isn't yours. It's a parallel one with enough similarities to confidently give me a basic outline of events in this one." Ditto said.

"Parallel?"

"Yeah. I would become stronger like you said if I was from your future but sadly that's not the case. There's millions of worlds parallel to this one, each with a list of differences. For example, this world's difference is that the hidden war with Salem isn't going to end with a victor. Nobody is going to live; not you, not Salem, not even the two brothers." Ditto bluntly stated.

"Does that mean it's pointless?" I asked him with growing concern.

"It would be. But Chronos brought me here to fix that. For the past few years, I've been doing a whole bunch of things that will eventually snowball into controlled chaos down the road. Hopefully, this discord will be enough to throw your world into uncertainty. Personally I think it's better than a future were extinction is the only outcome." He says.

"Isn't it bad to change the future? I do believe we had a huge discussion about it earlier." I reminded him.

Ditto tsks. "Ozzy, your world is doomed to die. If we really want to change the future of your world, we gotta get our hands dirty. I know that from experience."

"Is that why you were chosen to aid our world?" I ask him.

This caused Ditto to falter for a second. "Not sure actually. I mean I am good with a sword. I was also able to give peace to my world before leaving."

I smiled. "Yes, your world. Could you tell me about it? I'm a bit curious what differences our worlds have?" I ask.

"From what I've seen and have been told. The difference between our worlds is that the 'good guys' and 'bad guys' have reversed roles so to speak." Ditto says.

These words cause my smile to falter. "What do you mean?"

He chuckled a bit. "Let me put it like this. In my world, there is a woman of infinite life named Salem, whose charisma and tactical prowess helped her lead a revolution against a tyrannical wizard named Ozpin. Ozpin ruled with an iron fist, taught an elite squad called hunters to keep the populace in check and any time he died, he'd hijack another person with similar potential's mind and use them as a new host."

He let me have time to process the words before beginning again. "Then there's your world. In this place, there's an undying witch named Salem who manipulates others from the shadows. She and her shadow army fight against an ancient hero of old named Ozpin. Ozpin trains huntresses and huntsman to protect the piece, working together with them and like minded souls to hopefully put an end to Salem's looming threat."

I couldn't help but chuckle at his storybook esc summaries for our worlds. But as fun as it is to think of me as a tyrant, there is one question I have yet to ask. "What role did you play in your world? You look capable and know information I assume was kept close to the chest, so you obviously played a big role in your world."

"Curious about which side I'm on?" Ditto asks with a sarcastic tone.

"You did say you weren't a lackey of Salem's. But that could mean't your world exclusively, meaning you were working for a tyrant." I pointed out.

Ditto laughed. "Didn't think of that! But you don't need to worry...well, not anymore anyways. I did work for you way back when you were at war with Salem. I killed her, she told me something that woke me the hell up, and I slaughtered every last one of your staff members and students."

Like that, my concerns grew further. "...that doesn't put me at ease Ditto."

"What do you-Oh, your worried about the 'me' in this world. I don't think you'll have to worry about it. The 'me' in this world won't defect, this I guarantee." He consoles.

"Why is that?"

Ditto sighs. "Look Ozzy. Just because my world changes who is good and bad, doesn't mean we're born that way. Everything is born neutral, it's our environments that mold us. You could say that my world purposely put me in a bad situation so that I would side with you. Your 'me' without the sad backstory will get to you and stay with you withou-shit!"

"Ditto?"

"We keep getting off track, I need to ask you a favor. Can you allow me, young me, to join Beacon?"

I hesitate before slowly nodding. "Sure, but I'll need details, like why you need my help in the first place. You were able to get into Beacon before, why can't this 'you' do it again?"

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, make me waste more time. In my world, I was abused by my family. Eventually I had enough and killed them. Thinking my talents were being wasted, I falsified my transcripts and entered your school."

"Not the details I was referring-"

"The 'me' in this world has a loving and overbearing family. Eventually that makes him run away. Without any training, he would have falsify transcripts and enter your school."

"Still not-"

"Now with me in the picture, mini-me has combat experience due to my teachings and will find it unwise to falsify transcripts."

"Stop interrupting me and get to the point ."

"Fine. When I entered your school, I had experience and talent with a blade. My skill caught the Vale council's interest and found out about my false transcripts but other you forced them to let it slide due to my skill. Mini-me would have entered your school with so little combat ability that they would have flown under the Vale council's radar. The 'me' with my tutelage will not fly under the radar, his transcripts will become exposed and due to his ability, will be seen as a threat by the council, similar to how Glynda saw me." Ditto states, putting everything into perspective.

"Ah."

"Yeah. That's why I want you to formally invite the kid. That way you can tell the council that you judged his worth for yourself and deemed him safe."

I lean back in my chair, pretending to think it over. "...I suppose I can do that for you. But before anything can be put into stone, I'll need a name."

"Jaune Arc."

Now this caught my attention. Jaune Arc was a boy who went missing years ago and was just recently found. If what Ditto has told me is true, then he was kidnapped by Ditto. No, that's not right, he kidnapped himself. Yes, himself.

"Does that mean I should call you now?" I ask.

Ditto/Jaune shakes his head. "Just keep calling me Ditto. The Jaune Arc from my world's story has already ended. Now it's time for green bean to shine."

"Perhaps you shouldn't keep 'Ditto'." I warned.

"Why the hell not?"

"Because 'Ditto' isn't a color. I don't know your worlds standpoint on this, but in this world, a child without a color related name is considered a taboo child of sorts. A parent who names their child something other than a color when their last name isn't one either is seen as oppressing the child. That or the parent didn't care enough to give their child a unique name." I explain.

Ditto put a hand to his chin. "I think I did hear something about that. But who cares, just keep calling me Ditto. Hell, use my name as an alibi for why I'm such an asshole!"

"If that is what you wish. Now let's hope your last sentence doesn't foreshadow any issues with my request."

"Your request?"

"It's more of an offer really but yes. Could you please teach at my school?" I ask.

Ditto sharply inhales through clenched teeth. "I dunno Ozzy. After mini-me's training was complete, I was told to lay low, become an observer and entrust the future to him."

"A pity." I sadly say.

Ditto then proceeds to look upward with a confused expression, an expression that I know well. Something was speaking to him and whatever it was saying appeared to be good. He smiled and looked back at me.

"Well, well, well Ozzy. Looks like a god finally decided to answer some prayers! See you next semester." He cheered before walking to my elevator.

"Glad to hear it. But we need to go over the curriculum you'll be teaching." I say with a raised voice.

He looked over his shoulder. "Have some faith in the future-guy. I know what you'll be teaching, what class you desperately need and a whole curriculum planned out. All you need to do is sit back and enjoy the results."

With that he left my office. Alone with nothing but my thoughts, I turned to my window. Today I was told that the world I fought so hard to protect was going to end. But instead of feeling despair, I felt hope. For once in my life I was forced to look down and in doing so allowed me to see a puddle, a puddle that reflected the sky with more beauty than I thought possible.

This morning, my life was one that foretold mankind's end set in stone. A fate created by the hands of my undying ex-lover/nemesis who I had no hope of defeating. And to combat said unkillable threat was a group of either strong but self centered individuals or weak selfless individuals.

But in the span of an hour I was promised a student strong as he was heroic. Told that there is indeed a way to finally end Salem's life and eternal misery. Found a fate set in stone can be destroyed be a drill made of steel. Finally, after a life of constant failure, I had a chance to succeed.

* * *

**Before I leave, this is my plan for future updates at the moment.**

**The Last Phantom Thief: Dead/rebooted.**

**The Jokes on You: Story creation on hiatus. I've been trying to piece together enough story to fit into three volumes of RWBY. I have something decent already and will continue later on.**

**The Four Yato(Subject to change): Story creation on hiatus. Like the story above, I know which direction I'm going with the story, just need to properly piece it together.**

**RWBY: Gamer With a Twist: Story on hiatus, future chapter planning in progress. When I started writing again, I decided to take it easy and make a simple, yet fun, story about video games that evolved into what it is today. It wasn't anything serious and barely anything was planned out. That changes now. Because I have a solid foundation for the story, a handful of supporters and haven't touched the canon outside of the dark god, I decided now would be a good a time as any to start planning. I do have ideas for the RWBY canon portion but simply jumping to what I have down wouldn't be doing the story justice.**

**Hidden World: Story on hiatus, future chapter planning in progress. This story is a good story in my opinion. It has a cool premise and tons of potential but the biggest issue is that this story is something far more political in nature, something I know nothing about. But I will come back to this story eventually.**

**Demonic Wisdom: Story creation on hiatus. I love DmC's style and wish to do it justice. That's why I've been looking around other fanfics for good pointers for this kind of fanfic. But alas, what I found was disappointing. I looked up fanfics only to find very few long yet good ones that aren't in another language(For some reason English DmC fanfics are almost non existent. Spanish ones have no such issue but English is where draws the line apparently.).**

**Comical Aftertale: Story creation in progress. It took almost a year but it's finally coming.**

**An Arcing Dimensional Spectrum: Story on brief hiatus. The RWBY-Chibi of rooster teeth(Jelloapocalypse's opinion, not mine.) as it is oddly popular and well loved. The first book(Yes, first book.) has been planned and is going to be made post haste.**

**P.S. This is a behind the scene bonus for your pleasure. See you later, Spiffy.**

**P.P.S 's spell check really hates compound words and RWBY names.**


	9. Chapter 7

**Neopolitan is coming to Blazblue! Woot! I'm probably being frowned upon by some of you but I don't care! But I do suppose that my fanboying can wait. For now, lets get on with the chapter.**

**I've been working on this for awhile on and off for a few reasons. Firstly, my mass amounts of family bring mass amounts of vacations with them, that I'm usually invited to. Makes it hard to use the computer when you aren't able to. Secondly, I've been making a lengthy plot-line to make the future chapters of this fanfic interesting, with foreshadowing and all that junk. And thirdly, as soon as I got back from one of my trips, Fire Emblem Three Houses came out and pulled me into a world of unhealthy obsession.**

**But I've been doing what I can. I've used my phone when I couldn't access my computer, the chapter here has nothing to do with the future plot line at the moment and I've pulled my eyes away FE:TH to get this chapter out. Now I'm back! So lets answer some reviews before the story starts.**

**Proiu: Thanks buddy! Happy to know you enjoy it so far.**

**death'sgodson1224-DGS: Well here it is!**

**Fate-RWBY ODST: Well, I can't say for certain. I believe I answered a similar question before if you want to look for the answer. All I can say is that Jaune is straight.**

** 96: And I love you.**

**Roland's Blade: Well, ok I guess. Really unsure of how to answer that actually.**

**Now onto the story.**

**(P.S. Y'know, writing this part of the story has reminded me just how short RWBY episodes were way back when. It's actually hilarious in some aspects.)**

**(P.P.S. Because of the breaks I took between writing sessions. The grammar, wording and spelling may be a bit wonky. If it's too much then I'll fix it but from what I've seen it should be fine.)**

* * *

Chapter 7: No business, just making friends.

(Location: Beacon auditorium.)

(Time: Vol 1.)

(POV: Jaune.)

After some careful deductions, Ruby and I found where the rest of the students had congregated, the auditorium. It was packed to the brim, something that didn't settle well with my Ditto induced anxiety. I had to mentally stop myself from reaching for my weapons, an act that would soon be followed by the activation of my weapons in hopes of defending myself from potential threats.

Ruby on the other hand was in wonderland. I had allowed her to hold and examine my weapons along the way to our destination. This went down quite well with her apparently as she immediately became enamoured with my weapon, to the point of becoming useless during 'our' sleuthing. Not that I blamed her, she did like weapons after all.

I would also like to point out that said girl is currently linking her arm with mine as she tightly held my weapon in the other, skipping to her own special tune. It was adorable to see really, reminds me of my sister but actually lethal.

"Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot." A female voice yelled from within the legion of students.

Ruby looks in the direction of the shout and back to me, almost unsure of what she was going to do. "H-Hey, I gotta-"

I wave her off and nod my head in the direction the voice came from. "Go, I know how important family is."

"Y-Yeah...h-here you go." She holds my weapon towards me.

I smile. "How about you hold onto it for a bit. I doubt you've expended all those burning questions about my weapon in such a short time, so how about you look after it for me? Just be sure to give it back before we go to bed."

She gleams before running towards the one who called her. I decide to get comfortable and make a new friend. My friendship target was a girl with red hair, a brown over-bust corset and a god tiara upon her head.

"This seat taken?" I joke.

She smiles at my joke. "No, but do check for whoopie cushions, wouldn't want to be made a fool of on the first day of school." She jokes back.

I laugh. "I'll be sure too, thanks for the save. If I may be so bold, could I ask what my heroine's name is?"

She looked at my strangely with a field of emotions that seemed to change and mix at the same time. She looked at me will false fatigue, then confusion followed by uncertainty before finally stopping at curiosity, all while being covered under a fake celebrity smile. Was this chick popular or something.

"P-Pyrrha Nikos." She said cautiously, like she was unsure if saying her name was the right thing to do.

I held out my hand. "Jaune Arc. It's nice to meet a new friend."

She grasped my hand. "Likewise, Jaune."

"Now, we should probably pay attention."

"Y-Yeah…" She responds. Her eyes showing even more curiosity than before.

* * *

(POV: Ruby.)

'I just made the coolest friend ever!' I thought as I went to rendezvous with my sister. 'Not only did he let me see his weapon, but he also let me keep it too! I-I mean for a bit, keep it for a bit. Anywho, it was nice of him to let me dissect this marvel of weaponry, even if I got more questions than answers from it. I mean come on, it looks more high tech then Atlas weapons, and they are practically the best engineers in all of Remnant!'

Holding the weapon up in the air, I continued to ponder with an angry pout. 'Sure, it won't ever be cooler than Crescent Rose but it's still cool. Oh, and mysterious, can't forget mysterious.' I thought. 'I've done my best to figure out it's components from a glance but I can't! It has baffled even I, the weapon making masta, who prides herself on being able to figure these things out. Grrr! It's really starting to crumble my cookies!'

"Did you steal that from someone?" Yang comments from behind me.

I jump and turn to face my sister. "Yang! Don't scare me like that! Gosh, you almost gave me a heart attack!" I shout angrily.

"Woah there sis, I didn't mean to. You walked passed me with your head in the clouds, looked about ready to explode if I'm being honest." Sis explains.

"I'll have you know that I did explode!" I shout at her due to my irritation. "Moments after you left me to die, I knocked over a crabby girls luggage!"

Yang rolls her eyes. "Don't be so dramatic, you weren't gonna die."

I glare at her. "I. Exploded."

"Geez, calm down. If I'd known you were going to blow up I would have stayed. You don't need to get angry at me for something I didn't do. Besides, you may have exploded but it seems like you won in the end." Yang says, pointing at Jaune's sword.

"I...your right, sorry Yang. Guess I'm just a little irritated at this amazingly aggravating sword of awesomeness. Guess I just redirected my agitation at you." I tell her with a bow.

Yang waves off my apology. "No problem Rubes, we all have our bad days. What I'm concerned with is that sword. Please don't tell me you actually stole it."

I look down at the sword and panicked, my arms flailing all over the place. "N-No, I didn't steal it! I made a friend after my encounter with crabby mcmeany. After talking to them and showing off my weapon, they allowed me to examine theirs more thoroughly."

My sister smiles and pats my shoulder. "Look at you sis, already have a friend that you didn't ward off with your awkwardness or weapon fetish. Good job! I'll have to meet her after the speech."

"Actually, Jaune's a guy." I corrected her.

Yang's expression changed from a happy one to a pained one. "And they had the audacity to give my little sister their weapon? How bold of them. Don't worry Ruby, your friend won't be a guy for long!" She says to...reassure me?

It wasn't long before I realized what she meant and scrambled to save my best bud but another person decided to enter the fray, stopping me and Yang's respective actions.

"You!" A familiar voice shouted at me.

I jump into Yang's arms. "Oh, God! She's back."

Weiss gives me a halfhearted glare. "You're lucky that I'm busy looking for that blonde haired barbarian! If I wasn't, I'd make sure to thoroughly educate you properly to ensure that we aren't blown off the side of the cliff!"

Yang looked at her with shock. "Oh my God, you actually exploded."

I jump out of Yang's arms and proceed to look down while shuffling awkwardly in place. "It was an accident! I sneezed when she was yelling at me!" When I looked up, there was a pamphlet in my face. "What's this?"

She sighs with anger. "Like I told you, I have to find that other blonde dunce and don't have time to waste on someone who shouldn't be here. So I'll give you this to read. Hopefully, by the time you're done figuring out what it means, we'll have graduated Beacon and you'll have done all the maturing that you so desperately need to do."

As she began bullying me again, Yang stepped in. "Hey, I don't know who you are but you need to calm down. Yeah, Ruby may not be as mature as she could be but she's 15. And I think that if anyone needs maturing, it's you. A mature person wouldn't degrade people like this, especially someone who could become a potential friend."

Weiss huffed. "I wouldn't be caught dead with her-her or you. I don't know what gave you the right to butt into a personal matter, but if you think I'm going to waste my time with you two so that we can 'paint our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys, like tall, blond, and scraggly over there.' then you have another thing coming!" She shouted at Yang before realizing what she said. "Wait...tall, blonde, scragg-there you are you miscreant!"

The bully of many mean words walked towards her next victim. Surprisingly it was poor, defenseless Jaune. I was about to rush in and save Jaune with my semblance but something happened before I could. Just before Weiss was about to go bezerk, something hit her in the head, sending her tumbling to the ground. I couldn't really see it, but it kinda looked like a snowball.

I tried to find who threw it in the sea of students but couldn't quite pinpoint it. It wasn't until I saw Jaune doing the same thing that I got my answer. He, unlike myself, scanned the stage for the hero in the shadows before mumbling something. "Oh god, he's here?" I think it was.

Following his example, I looked at the stage and found the man from the fight with Torchwick. He was sitting on the edge of a foldable lawn chair with a smirk, slowly throwing another white orb in his remaining hand. After some time he met my stare and stopped juggling the snow, nodding his head to the left and informing me of Ozpin's presence.

Ozpin walked up to the podium and set up a microphone. "Good afternoon students, my name is Professor Ozpin as I'm sure you know. I'd like to thank you all for deciding to choose to join us at Beacon and hope you've had a safe trip." He then looks to the women on his left before speaking again. "Now, I'll... keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. Then, when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I have to sadly inform you all of a harsh reality, a harsh reality that requires a professional to explain."

The one arm man from before gets up from his chair and makes his way over to Ozpin as he continues his speech.

"I would tell you all myself but I think his words, while crude and blunt. will put it into perspective. Allow me to welcome professional huntsman, Ditto." Ozpin moves to the side so this 'Ditto' person can take his place.

The man coughs before taking the mic. "Now kiddos here's the deal, I'm only gonna say this once so listen close. This critical piece of information is something that even the great Ozpin can't say without sugar coating it. You ready?"

Everyone, myself included, lean in a bit. "It's pointless for half you brats to be here."

The mans words made a deafening silence as the students tried to figure out if they actually heard him correctly. "What the hell's with your 'good, gosh, golly he said a swear' faces? I said what I said you fucking shit-rats and I won't say it again. What I will do is explain myself, because obviously some of you are gonna understand sooner than others. A majority of this group doesn't deserve to be in this school; not because they lack the training or because they lack the money. No the reason is simple, you all lack the grit needed to be a hunter."

This made a bunch of students started shouting at him with rage, only for the particularly loud students to suddenly lose their aura and panic. "See this? This is why. As soon as these kids, who thought they were hot enough shit to speak up against me, lost their aura they began to cower in fear. A true hunter wouldn't care, they'd fight to the end, even if they were diagnosed with cancer. But I look at all of you and see little scaredy cats who only want to fight so long as they have access to their 'superpowers' and their 'forcefield'."

The students still looked angry, but were far more reluctant to speak up. "But alas, that way of thinking will get you killed. Relying on your weapons, aura and semblance alone will not be enough to become a true hunter. Sure, you can pass Beacon academy to become a hunter, but you also have to realize that anyone can pass Beacon, all you need is to get above average grades and they'll be forced to give you a certificate. Many of you here will think that they accomplished something amazing by getting it, showing it off like it makes you special before instantly getting eaten by a Grimm. It is simply a fact of life."

While everyone was whispering amongst themselves, I found myself in deep thought. I began doubting a bunch of things as I tried defending my situation. But one thought seeped through the cracks. 'Do I belong here? Weiss didn't seem to think so.' I thought somberly.

"Basically what I'm saying is that a true hunter doesn't have to rely on the strength of their tools, they need to rely on something greater, themselves. Anyone can have talent with something, but it's only those who train to better themselves that can truly be called gifted. No amount of talent is going to outweigh true effort. Some of you may know what true effort is but most of you only think you know what true effort is. Now which category are you gonna be apart of?" Ditto finishes his speech before leaving the stage.

Ozpin walks back up and grabs our attention. "As Ditto so...nicely, put it. You all lack conviction, something that truly drives you past your limits. But this is a school, a place of learning and growth, you'll have 4 years to find this drive and show the world your mettle. We as the staff of Beacon will do our best to help you search for it, but it is up to you to find it. Just don't let it become an obsession, things like these come with time. So while you wait, be sure to follow your passions and choose extra classes that appeal to you."

Ozpin's speech calmed the crowd, his words nullifying some of the impact of Ditto's words. Once everyone was settled to a degree, someone asked a question. It was Jaune, and he had a wide smile.

"Will Ditto have an extra class we can attend?" His voice drew all eyes on him.

Ozpin smiles at Jaune before answering. "Why yes, he's going to be teaching a new class called effectiveness amplification class. The curriculum of that class is a mystery to even myself but he did say it was for those who agree with his speech or for those bold enough to challenge it."

With that, Ozpin leaves the stage and Glynda takes his place. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

Everyone started leaving the auditorium, I was no different. The crowd flowed like a river, pulling me along as it murmured about the speech's. Seeing the trend, Yang spoke up. "Soooo...that was something. The message was a little negative though."

I nod. "Yeah. Hey Jaune, why did you want to go to Ditto's class? Jaune?" I look around to find that he's disappeared, like he wasn't even there.

* * *

I was in my pajamas, writing a note in my journal to send to my signal friends as I waited for Jaune. Today had been nerve wracking, first thing that happens as I walk onto Beacon grounds was an explosion, then I found myself in doubt during the opening speech of all things. If it weren't for Jaune appearing in between those two events, I'd probably be going through a full on panic attack.

"It's like a big slumber party." Yang says.

"Don't think dad would approve of all the boys though." I say back, focusing on my journal.

"I know I do!" Sis purrs as she gazes at all the boys. "Hey Rubes, isn't that the Jaune you've been blithering about?"

My head snaps to where she was pointing. There Jaune was, walking towards us in footie pajamas. "Good to see you again Ruby. I assume that you've kept Crocea Mors safe?"

Nodding, I pull Crocea Mors out from underneath my sleeping bag. "Yup, shes right here. I didn't get to fully examine it but you do need it for tomorrow."

"Thanks Ruby."

"Wow, to think someone as dorky as you had the balls to give his sword to my sister." Yang commented with malice.

"I'm sorry, I don't think we've met before." Jaune says before turning his attention to Yang.

My sister held her hands together to imitate a gun. "Xiao Long, Yang Xiao Long."

"Nice to meet you Xiao-long-yang-xiao-long. A fitting name for someone who looks like they're waken up shaken, not stirred." He quips back before looking over her body.

"You looking me over now? Find anything you like yet?" Yang asks, emphasizing her bust.

"Yes I do. Your arms."

Yang laughs. "Ha! At least he admi-wait what?"

"You've obviously put some decent work into your arms. By looking at your elbows, I can deduce that you often extend and contract your arms. This usually means that the person uses grapples and punches, a useful style of fighting for any situation. The only thing I can criticize is your lack of leg muscles due to not using your legs with your punches." Jaune explains.

Yang slowly rubs her temples. "Ok, hold up. I'm trying to understand the situation he-"

Jaune cuts her off. "The reason I bring this up is to not only maximize your combat potential, but also let you know the benefits it will have on staying fit longer with half the effort."

"Can you just-wait, weight loss? You have my attention fellow blonde." Yang tells him, not that he was paying attention to her during his ramble.

"If you keep your legs fit and strong, they will be less affected by running long distances and eventually cease to cramp up by said long distances. This affect only increases in value when it comes to huntsmen and huntresses with aura. Couple this with tons of endurance that most aura users gain in time and you'll get someone who can run long distances without any drawbacks, aka, constant exercise. This is the secret of a hunter's physique...well, most hunters, some hunters who propel themselves with semblances and weaponry will often find themselves a tad pudgier then other huntsmen or huntresses. Still fit, but not as fit as those who have to run all the time." Jaune continues his explanation.

Throughout the lecture, my sister was committing these notes to memory, occasionally looking down to pinch her stomach. Yang always was concerned with her body, from hair to toe, so it makes sense that she would be trying to learn what she could. Heck, even I found it a bit interesting, though I don't think running alone can keep you fit, right? I mean, it does help burn off more calories and stuff.

Yang puts her hand on Jaune's shoulder. "I thank you for this info my comrade. As thanks, I'll let you date my sister. Just be sure shes home by 9:30."

Yang's words cause me to blush. "W-W-Wha!?"

Yang gave him a mischievous smile. "Heck, if you really want, me and you could go practice these words of wisdom sometime. You know, get hot and bothered together, maybe have a wrestling match with each other. Whadda ya say?"

After Yang said that I calmed down a little. These were her 'code-words' for when she met boys who were trying to date me. They are words that sound suggestive to lure them in and then threaten them by actually keeping her promise in violent ways.

It was a relief to know that my sister wasn't using me as a tool for trading. But while I knew her words were just to ensnare Jaune in her trap, I couldn't help but feel a little possessive of my new friend when she said them. I was scared she'd scare him off because her offers made our relationship awkward.

Jaune looked at her with an odd look before sighing. "While it's nice for you to offer, I'm gonna have to decline. To both dating your sister and making a move on you. They're just undesirable offers."

Yang looked at him with confusion and anger. "Really? The thought of pinning each other down not appealing to you? And what about Rubes? Isn't it a little insensitive to deny my sister a date by using the word undesirable?"

'Honestly, I'm just glad we can keep our relationship the same.' I thought to myself, a small part of me feeling upset at his denial.

"Let me rephrase that better. Both you and Ruby are very attractive in your own rights, any man can see that and I'm no different. The issue is that you're barking up the wrong tree. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm as straight as the line on a dead man's heart monitor. It's just I don't want to date at the moment due to some personal experience."

"Personal experience?" Yang questions

"Yeah. Plus my instincts are telling me that if I do swing in your direction, you'd swing back." Jaune said as I nodded.

"So your only against it now?" I found myself say before clamping my hands over my mouth.

Yang's face brightens. "Good point Ruby. You say you don't want to date now, but what of the future, Jaune?" Yang teases.

"If you can make me want to date you, then I'll date you. The same goes for any female in this building. But until then, I'm good with just making friends." Jaune challenges, that small part of me from before cheering for joy.

Yang smiles. "Good sentiment lady-killer. It is kind of a pity, but I'll settle with friends with benefits."

I stamp my foot with a massive blush on my face. "Stop trying to seduce my friend! He's the only friend I got here!"

Yang shrugs. "All the more reason you should try to get some benefits."

Having enough of Yang's teasing, I grab Jaune's hand. "Well I'm perfectly fine without benefits thank you very much! Now if you'll excuse me, we are going to take our benefit-less friendship away from your corrupting hands!"

With that, I pull Jaune away from my sister. 'Honestly! Why does Yang have to do this to me!? Does she not know how hard it is to make friends without her scaring people off!? Well that doesn't matter right now. What matters is that I'm finally alone with my friend Jaune...alone together...hand in hand...oh my.'

I begin to blush once I realize this and try to salvage the situation, the best I could. "I'm really sorry for her behaviour! She's usually much bett-she doesn't do that all the ti-she means well is what I'm trying to say."

Jaune waves off my apology. "Don't worry about it Ruby. She's actually far better than most girls you'll find in a bar, not that I've had much experience. Honestly, it's a breath of fresh air to have her tease me from afar instead of trying to snuggle up to me. It makes me panic a bit and makes me think the worst of them, like they're pickpockets or something."

"Well...she would probably end up hurting you if you accepted…" I truthfully tell him.

Jaune shrugs. "Better then getting stabbed before I'm even invited to something."

I nod. "I guess so…"

"Is that also coming from experience?" A new voice said.

It belonged to an amber eye'd girl in a black yukata and a black bow atop her head. She was walking over to us, emotions not really present on her features.

"A lot of experience actually. You'd be surprised at how many people try to do that in Vacuo, in broad daylight, I might add. What about you? You also an expert in near death experiences?" Jaune asked.

The girl chuckled at his words. "I suppose I do dabble from time to time."

Jaune chuckled back before asking another question. "So what brings you here to me and my adorable friend's little inner circle? No offence but I get an introverted vibe from you miss..."

She shifted her weight to her other foot and crossed her arms. "Blake Belladonna, and it was mostly curiosity."

"Nice to meet you Blake. My name is Ruby Rose, and this is my best friend Jaune Arc." I introduced myself.

"It's nice to meet you too Ruby. Glad to see the heiress didn't scare you off." She said back.

"She may have been mean, but that won't scare me off! I drink milk!" I said while striking a pose. "Oh! Jaune helped to I guess."

"Good to know that my efforts have been acknowledged." Jaune sarcastically said.

"Hard not too. It's not everyday you hear someone call the talented songstress and heiress of the schnee dust company a 'blue blooded bitch'." Blake points out.

Jaune begins nodding, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Ah, you saw all that?"

"I did. I think she needed it honestly. It was a good lecture about maturity that she really deserved to hear. Plus, the way you laid into her was quite pleasing to say the least, better than anything I could've done." She admits. "I also really liked to see someone say what you said about equality."

"Good to see I have some fans."

"Well, you are entertaining to watch. Even when you were faced with the blonde seductress, you kept your grip on your morals and ideals. I respect that." The amber eyed girl complemented.

"It was kinda surprising for me as well. Not many people resist her teasing like you do. You were kinda like a Mistral comic protagonist now that I think about it." I pointed out.

The girl's eyes widened a bit before smiling. "Now that you mention it, he kinda was like that, wasn't he?"

Jaune leaned back, grasping his chest. "Ow! My feelings! I'm not dense, I'm just hiding behind a shield!"

We all laughed at Jaune's little performance before Jaune spoke again, his arms snaking around the back of his head. "In all seriousness though, it has been a very long time since I've read one of those. I've missed so many new volumes."

"Well if you ever want to catch up on some of them, I could always lend you a few. I-If you want that, that is!" I offer awkwardly.

Jaune smiles with excitement. "I'd love that. Thanks Ruby! Hey! Maybe we can make a comic book club after our initiation? We could all sit down, relax after a long day of studying, and recommend each other our favorite comics to each other."

I nod with equal excitement. "Yeah! That's a great idea! What about you Blake?"

Blake backs up a bit. "Hate to say it, but I'm not the biggest fan of comics anymore. I much prefer a good book with paragraphs instead of pictures."

I become a little sad at her words. But after a bit of thinking, I came up with a compromise. "What if it was just a book club? That way we can have the best of both worlds."

Blake and Jaune look at each other before nodding.

"Sounds good to me."

"Me as well."

I jump with excitement. "Then it's settled! Let operation 'book club' commence!"

"Will you all shut up." The mean girl walked over to us, clearly tired and in need of some serious beauty sleep. "I've dealt with so much tomfoolery today that I'm about to lose my mind! If you guys don't be quite I'll be forced to do something drastic!"

"Like send us to elementary school?" Jaune asks.

"Why would I-YOU!" Weiss looks at Jaune like he was stupid, until she realized who he was. "Do you have any idea what kind of hell you put me through!? You put me into so much shock that a janitor had to snap me out of it! And if that isn't embarrassing enough, I accidentally yelled at three other unkempt blondes while I was trying to find you!"

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "You say that like it's my fault."

"It is! If it weren't for you, I'd have properly taught that child a proper lesson about being observant! Instead I had to search the entire school while dodging snowballs that came from dust knows where because you were too scared to stop hiding and face me like a man!" Weiss shouted, getting louder each sentence she finished.

"But I wasn't hiding though-" Jaune tried to say.

"Shut it you barbarian! It doesn't matter now! What matters is that your here with nowhere to run. I will get to properly-" Weiss was hit in the back of the head, effectively knocking her out as she fell on the floor face first. We would have caught her but we were just, you know, just so shocked that it had happened and stuff.

"Huh, it took 43 snowballs to take her down this time. What a shame, I still have 207 left to use, clearly I underestimated her." Another new voice said.

We looked over to the owner of the voice. It was the guy from the podium but instead of being in his awful looking armor, he was wearing a similar onesie to Jaune's, with one of the arms folded up and held with a pin.

Speaking of similar, he also resembled Jaune a great deal. Their hairstyle was similar, their heads were the same shape and they even had the same eyes. The only differences were that Ditto looked like an experienced huntsmen, with scars and grey streaks of hair. He was also a good 6 inches shorter than Jaune when it came to height.

"Hey Ditto. How have you been." Jaune asked with a 1000 lien smile.

Ditto looked over to Jaune. "Hello Jaune, hows my favorite pupil?"

I looked at them with shock. 'Favorite pupil!?'

"Terrible." Jaune answered with the smile still plastered on his face.

"And here I thought you liked to have fun with ladies." Ditto said with a dangerous gleam in his eye.

Jaune glared at him. "Don't you dare bring that night up you old man."

"Can we hold on a second! I'm still trying to figure this out. You said that Jaune's your disciple?" I plead.

"I'm as surprised as you Ruby." Blake said with interest.

Ditto grinned at me. "Damn straight ya brat! I'm very proud of him, I mean look at the wound he left on me!"

He gestured at his body and I looked with all my might to find a scar on his face that was out of place. But apparently I took to long as Ditto snapped me out of my observations.

"Hey dum dum. Stop looking at my face and look at my wound." He then pointed at his lack of an arm.

My eyes widen to the size of cookies. "Wait, you meant the arm!? I thought you were talking about one of those cuts!"

"Why would you think I'd be talking about a scratch? Furthermore, why would I even be proud of a scratch?" Ditto said, like it was obvious.

"What I think Ruby is trying to point out is that disciples usually leave scars on their mentors instead of amputating their arms." Blake backed up my case while I agreed with her in my mind.

"I guess that makes sense. To be fair, you weren't wrong, the scars also came from Jaune." Ditto said, causing both Blake and I to look at Jaune. "Before you start changing your opinions of my favorite money leech, I'll have you know that these wounds came from his final test. It entailed a fight without anybody holding back, if he didn't do what he did then I would have done the same thing to him. In the end though, all that matters is that it was glorious."

That was a bit better I guess, better than my best friend Jaune secretly being violent in nature. But wouldn't that make Jaune stronger than Ditto?

"Yes it would." Ditto answered my question that I had apparently blurted out.

"Are you alright Ditto? Nobody said anything." Blake asked Ditto, making me realize that I didn't blurt anything out. But how did he...

"So Ditto. Can I ask why you're here?" Jaune asks.

Ditto nods. "Sure thing. But I have something to do first."

Ditto pulls out a microphone from dust knows where and taps it twice. The sound of each tap could be heard throughout the ballroom and seemed to echo throughout the halls too. My guess was that the microphone was hooked up to the schools PA system.

"_Testing, testing, one two, one two. *ahem* Sky Lark, you may have the hair of a girl but I know for a fact you aren't one. And I, as well as every woman trying to get their beauty sleep, would appreciate it if you didn't fondle them while they're resting. I may not be watching you right now but that doesn't mean I can't see you mister. Now, since this is your first offence I'm willing to keep this between me and you, so go to your side of the ballroom before someone thinks you're a pervert or something."_

Blake and I looked around the ballroom to see that someone was trying to sneak over to the girls side of the ballroom. They were headed to a part of the ballroom that seemed to have a large number of girls already asleep.

However the announcement was really loud and had made the attention of every student, from those awake to those asleep, snap to the teen in question. He looked like a child caught stealing from the cookie jar. Everyone was looking at him but nobody did a thing.

"_Seriously, get a move on. If you stay there like an idiot, some of the girls will wake up. Do you really want to be seen like this?"_

Ditto's words could be heard throughout the entire school. Everybody was already well awake and staring right at him. Despite how he worded his sentence, everybody felt that Ditto was doing it on purpose. Slowly hammering in the stakes of humiliation as he did his walk of shame to his sleeping bag.

Ditto turned the Mic off. "Anyways, I'm here to look after the 'little darlings who could do no wrong' for the night. My first duty of many as a staff member of Beacon academy."

Jaune looked at him with disbelief. "They let you be a teacher."

"Hey, one question per person." Ditto scolded.

Blake stepped up. "Then let me ask a question. Are you two related?"

Ditto laughed at her question. "Despite our appearances, we are not related. If we were, I sure as hell wouldn't act like this. I'm so old that I'd probably be spouting crap about the Arc's honar or heroism. Now how about you scythe wielder?"

"H-How do you know I use a scythe?"

"You sure you want to use your question for-you know what, I won't count that as your question. I can tell by the muscle structure in your arms and shoulders." Ditto explained.

'Just like Jaune.' I thought. 'Now I see where he gets it from. This Ditto guy didn't even need to hold my hand like Jaune di-bad thoughts! No cookies for you!'

"Hey, I don't have all night." Ditto's words snapped me back to reality.

"Sorry! Um, did you make Jaune's weapon?" I ask.

Ditto looked taken aback. "What makes you ask that?"

I looked down and started pressing my fingers together. "W-Well your armor on stage looked similar and so I thought-I mean I assumed that you might be the creator...maybe."

Ditto put his hand to his chin. "Your half right. That sword is a family heirloom from the Arc clan. It has been passed down from generation to generation. Jaune is this generation's wielder and has allowed me to modify it to increase it's combat potential."

"...can you teach me your ways? Pretty please!?" I beg, jumping at him in hopes to latch onto his legs.

He jumps over my attempt to capture him. "I told Jaune before and I'll tell you now. One question per person. Now with that done, I'm off, gotta bring the icicle bitch to her prestigious sleeping bag. Don't have sex while I'm gone, looking at you Ruby and Blake."

Both of us blush like crazy, Blake less so. "W-W-Why would you say that!?"

"Cause your the only ones in your book club that have a possibility of getting it on. Sure, Jaune's there, but you'd have an easier time bringing back a severed Grimm head then get him to indulge himself." Ditto then leaves, dragging Weiss along by the ankle, her face still on the ground.

"...well, that was unnecessary." Blake commented, blush almost faded.

"Yeah!" I agree. "N-No offence to you Blake."

"Non taken."

"Welp, that's Ditto for you." Jaune says, evidently tired.

"He was kinda an asshole." Blake pointed out.

"Blake! She didn't mean it Jaune! He's a very nice man."

Jaune laughed. "No, shes right. He does tons to torment and humiliate those around him, myself included. Just be glad that your not on his bad side, if you were then his words would be far more harsh and probably wouldn't stop until you've had enough of him, even then I don't think he'd stop."

"You saying it's calculated?" Blake asks.

Jaune nods. "Very, he knows how far to push people without causing major damage to his relationships. I don't know how he does it, but he just knows. What scares me more though is the fact that every word he picks is calculated to the point that they help him accomplish a greater goal without your knowledge."

I grimace at that. "You make it seem like he's some kind of god."

Jaune shrugs. "You'll see what I mean in time. For now, we should go get some sleep."

"Sleep sounds good." Blake says through a yawn.

I look in the direction Ditto went. "You two do that. I got one more thing to do before I go to bed. See you tomorrow!"

With a wave goodbye, I made my way over to Ditto or what I thought was Ditto. It was hard to be sure, all I saw was a bunch of blankets being tossed around as someone struggling with a sleeping bag.

Upon closer inspection, I could say that I was correct. Ditto was there and holding Weiss by the hair, keeping her back straight and in a sitting position. Then he pushed her head down so that it rested between her legs and level with her feet, folding her in half. After that he closed up the sleeping bag...with her in it...why?

He turned his head towards me. "What can I do for you?"

"Why are you doing this to Weiss? I mean she's mean and all but…"

"Simple, I don't like her."

"But why?" I pressed.

Ditto shook his head. "Look flower brat, I don't have much time to explain my questionable motives for my questionable actions. Besides, that's not the question you want answered."

My mind snapped back to my previous question. "Right, sorry. I would have asked it before but I kinda panicked."

"I figured as much. What is it?"

I took a deep breath in and exhaled. "That night, with Roman Torchwick and stuff. What did you do? Was it like a semblance or a type of dust or-" I was stopped by Ditto's hand.

"The answer to your question is simple but I can't really explain it fully right now. I will tell you that it was not a semblance or dust or a hologram." Ditto said.

"I never said hologram." I pointed out.

"But you were about too, right after poisonous mist that causes hallucinations." Ditto says without any doubt. "Point is, I can't give you the answers, that'd be cheating."

"Cheating?"

He nods. "Well of course. I can't just give you answers to questions for my class."

"Your class? Why would people need to learn about-unless it's something that can be taught." I realize.

Ditto looks impressed. "Very astute Ruby. Indeed, that technique can be taught, should you be in my class that is."

"Well, if I pass the initiation then I'll be sure to sign up. I want to know why I saw what I did." I tell Ditto with determination.

Ditto snorts. "When you pass initiation I'll welcome you with open arms. But really Ruby? That was a low blow, it's a teachers job to say things that students want the answers to, it's unfair for the student to say things that teachers want answers to."

"What do you mean?"

Ditto sighs. "Enough questions. Go the fuck to sleep."

* * *

**Now, I've probably asked something similar in the past, but I want those willing to answer to answer honestly. Would you like it if RWBY were remade some time in the future? They wouldn't change anything drastically, they'd just add to it to make it better, like how Persona 5 is getting remade into Persona 5 The Royal. **

**I'm asking because after watching the Jelloapocalypse video, I started remembering things I was told during the early years of RWBY, the big thing being a potential remake. **

**Personally I think it would be a great idea. Now that they have a basic story down and have a clear future for RWBY, I think it would be smart to do remake the early seasons of RWBY. They could fix their story building issue, give more depth to characters early on and increase how short the episodes are. To top that all off, they could also fix the low budget animation, one of the big things that made it hard to get into the series for me.**

**Just imagine it! All the characters brought to life again with cool new animation and with bright, bold colors that keep you watching. You'd get to see fights re-imagined in ways you'd never think of with new effects, tactics and batter line of growth being shown in each battle. Just think of how cool the Winter and Qrow fight would be!**

**Now, though I brought the question up, I'm not saying I hate RWBY or what it's done in the past. I love the show to bits, more than I should probably. I'm just saying that Jelloapocalypse brought up some good points that could easily become null and void if this was to happen.**

**Anyways, I'll let you go after asking you to please review the story to give me a compliment, criticism or question. It makes me sad when I don't get any, though I think the fault lies with me alone on that front. If you could give me any suggestions of what to do to stay connected, I'd love to hear them. I've tried to use Discord but I had issues with that one, not smart enough apparently.**

**Later everyone! Spiffy.**


	10. Chapter 8: Initiating the initiation

**Being an adult sucks! How do you adult people deal with it! My struggles with figuring out the answer to life aside, I've found it decently hard to get into my fanfic mojo. It's not cause I'm tired or have too much on my, in fact it's the opposite, I need something to get my mind going. **

**When I was in school, I would constantly think of good stuff out of boredom. But now that there is nothing to bore me with, I'm finding it hard to get the juices flowing. So until I get a job to spark my creative vigor, expect the chapters to come out a bit slower. **

**Now that we're done talking about my inner demons, let's talk about the fanfic. My goal for all my fanfics is to get to a chapter minimum of 10 before progressing to other chapters, meaning after this fanfic get's to chapter 10, I'll focus on my other stuff for a bit. I'll return eventually, I'm just letting you know ahead of time. Gotta show the love to my other stories.**

**Speaking of showing love, let's look at the reviews.**

**Bloodbrother37: I thought of that at first but then I realized that everyone involved would probably do their best to keep things secret for their own reasons. Take Jaune for example; Jaune would keep it a secret due to the respect and bond he shares with Ditto, even though he knows just how bad it was in hindsight. Ironically enough, I felt that if anyone was going to spill the beans it was gonna be Ditto himself.**

**proiu: Good to see you proiu! Glad you liked the chapter and share my views on the remake! Not to say I don't like RWBY as it is...was...I'd just love to see the old stuff with the new engine and even add more content to fix any plot holes or issues they had before.**

**death'sgodson1224-DGS: *sniffle* Thanks bro! It's good to know I've appeased you so! Hope you like this chapter just as much.**

**(It appears this next one is in spanish. I'll google translate so that you guys, myself and the reviewer can understand. P.S. Had to use google translate so I can't guarantee the quality of the answer.)**

**0akarigan0: Buena historia, me atrapó desde el inicio. Mi único duda es como se relacionaran con el nuevo maestro tlos demás miembros de la familia Arc ahora que saben que es el mentor secuestrador. Gran fic muchas gracias.**

**(Good story, it caught me from the beginning. My only doubt is how the other members of the Arc family will relate to the new teacher now that they know he is the kidnapping mentor. Great fic thank you very much.)**

**Spiffy: Para apagar tu duda, permíteme explicarte. No hay muchas personas que conozcan la verdadera identidad de Ditto. Por lo tanto, generalmente está a salvo con la mayoría de las personas, incluso con la mayoría de la familia Arc. Esto se debe a que Gris no delató a Ditto, solo quería que terminara toda la prueba. Por supuesto, habrá algunas personas, especialmente Arc, que lo resolverán, pero están lejos de Beacon.**

**(To snuff out your doubt, allow me to explain. There aren't many people who know Ditto's real identity. Therefore, he is generally safe around most people, even the majority of the Arc family. This is because Gris didn't rat Ditto out, he just wanted the whole ordeal over. Of course there will be some people, especially Arc's, who'll figure it out but they are far from Beacon.)**

**Guest: I would love that too and could totally see some more character growth in earlier chapters now that rooster teeth has a good sense of where RWBY is heading.**

**Guest from chapter 7: You're gonna have a field day buddy!**

**With that, I think I should cut the chatter. Say it with me now! It's showtime!**

* * *

Chapter 8: Initiating the initiation.

(Location: Halls of Beacon.)

(Time: Vol 1.)

(POV: Gris.)

Today's the big day for my boy Jaune! It makes me, Prisme and the rest of the family proud to know he's getting to live his dream, those we are still in touch with anyways. To show our support and joy for his success, we decided to pay him a little visit before his initiation.

We figured that after we got the house all rooted in place and had a good rest we'd have a chance to visit as a family. We'd embarrass him, not too much but enough to be considered a parent. Then, after the initiation was over, we would invite him and his team for lunch, so we could all get acquainted. At least...that was the plan me and my dear wife made. Violet apparently had other plans on the matter.

"Violet! Violet! Please slow down!" I shouted at the retreating form of my daughter as she weaved through the halls with the skill of a master dancer.

Eventually I stopped running and sighed. 'I look away for one second and she takes off. Haaa, just my luck.'

After my sigh of irritation I started moving again, walking instead of running, towards the same path Violet took. 'No point in rushing, she'll find Jaune eventually and is more than capable of defending herself.'

Turning another corner, I found myself face to face with a scene I didn't think I'd be able to see. There Violet was, talking with one miss Goodwitch who looked like her demeanor was in jeopardy, which is properly likely given the situation.

There isn't a doubt in my mind that she's facing difficulties due to Violet right now. As the deputy of Beacon, she is required to 'uphold the law' with a stern attitude to set an example for the other students. But right now she isn't speaking with a student, in fact she's speaking with a girl who has a childlike personality that fits her looks.

Goodwitch bent down and gave Violet a waning smile. "If you'd like help finding your big brother I need to know a little more."

Violet tilted her head. "But big brother is big brother."

Goodwitch exhaled and rubbed her eyes. "Can you at least tell me your name. It'd help me find your brother."

"But you're not supposed to give your name to peoples you're not friends with."

"I believe the correct phrase is 'don't talk to strangers'."

"But spec-ek-kalls lady, everybody talks to strangers."

Goodwitch smirked a tad. "I suppose you're correct. But that's when you're older. Rules are different when you're an adult. When you're a child, you must only speak to people you know."

"That's why I'm talking to you spec-ek-kalls lady. I see you all the time on TV."

"But that doesn't mean I'm not a stranger."

"I know that. It means you become susseptibbles to exception 2." Violets smile grew twice the size it was originally. "Daddy told me that if strangers are on TV, scandals become very, veeery scary for them."

Goodwitch's face paled considerably. "That's...correct."

After watching all of that, I decided to intervene and walked towards the two. Before Goodwitch had to deal with another round of psychological warfare.

"Violet." I call to her.

She turned around to face me before running up and hugging me. "Daddy!"

I pulled he up so her head was level with mine. "You can't go running off like that."

"I'm sorry daddy." She apologizes with a pout.

"So I can presume she's your child?" Goodwitch asked.

I turned towards her and nodded. "Right you are miss Goodwitch. Sorry for the trouble she caused."

"Quite alright Gris, she didn't do anything troublesome, just mentally taxing. What is troubling is your presence in Beacon. Don't you know that entering Beacon grounds during initiation day is against school rules and is considered breaking and entering?" She asked with a stern tone.

"Yes but we got special permission from Ozpin."

She put her hand to her temples. "Of course you did. I tell you, that man is going to be the death of me."

I laughed. "He is an odd one."

Suddenly, Violet began frantically struggling, stabbing me in the eye and breaking free from my hold, running off much faster than before. Knowing what that entailed I ran after her, Goodwitch hot on our trail. Violet turned a corner, I followed suit and found Violet mid-jump towards a figure.

"I missed you big brother!" The airborne 11 year old screamed as she latched onto his back.

"Who the hell are you?" A familiar voice asked.

Looking over the figure, I found that it wasn't Jaune. Instead it was someone who I didn't want to see again. The kidnapper. But while I was seething internally, Violet was filled with confusion.

"You're not big brother, big brother is big brother. Big brother powers were supposed to take me to big brother but it took me to not-big brother." Violet murmured, her world falling apart.

"Alright then. I'mma just move you away like a few inches." Jaune's kidnapper uncomfortably pushed her away before noticing us and smirking. "I promise you, it's not what it looks like."

"Don't put your hands on my daughter." I commanded in a calm, yet cold, voice.

"Honestly officers, she came onto me." He said in a joking manner, pushing my daughter towards me.

I caught my daughter's petrified body before narrowing my eyes at him. "What are you doing here Ditto?"

Ditto began pacing around. "Well after my other venture with children was over and done, I thought it'd be nice to take a job in a...similar field."

"You don't mean-"

"Indeed Gris, your fears are correct. Ditto here is Beacon's newest teacher and first ever clown to join our rank as staff." Goodwitch said, irritation in her voice.

I looked at her with a dumbfounded look. "...Him!?"

Goodwitch nodded. "Yes, much to my dismay. Just another one of Ozpin's inconceivable decisions."

"Kept my nose clean as a fiddle-I did!" Ditto added, with an accent of sorts.

"Ditto's record was exceptional despite how he acts, surprising as that is. Though, I'm more surprised you two are already acquainted." Goodwitch admitted before looking at Ditto for...something, something more than an answer.

"I know dear old Gris from way back. Didn't keep in touch though." Ditto said with a serious tone, making Goodwitch nod and lose that look in her eyes. "Now can anyone tell me why the little mongral attacked me."

"I'm curious as well. Why did your daughter spontaneously run off like that?" Goodwitch asked me.

"It's her semblance." I grunt. "She calls it her 'big brother powers' and it lets her find Jaune with ease."

Goodwitch's face becomes one of shock. "What an odd power. And you're sure that's all it does?"

Before I was able to speak, Ditto butt in. "To answer your question Glynda, he is sure. Sadly that also makes him wrong."

Both myself and Goodwitch look at Ditto, both baffled and full of curiosity at his statement.

"Excuse me?"

"I agree with Gris. You are going to have to give us an explanation on what you mean."

Ditto cranes his neck. "Semblances can be many things-can do many things. But a semblance cannot be that specific with its various gimmicks and rules. My guess is that her semblance acts like a sonar of sorts that can locate objects that fit the required activation requirements. Jaune somehow fits her semblance's requirements and allows her to find him."

"If it works as you say, wouldn't that mean she could find more with this sonar instead of just Jaune?" I ask.

Ditto shrugs. "Probably. From what I've gathered she is using her semblance subconsciously, which makes my theory have two possibilities for why Jaune is the sole target. A; she can sense a bunch of things at once but subconsciously stops herself from sensing anything but Jaune. And B; she can sense one thing at a time but subconsciously has it locked on Jaune."

That does make sense in a way. But it makes another question arise. "If she can only sense Jaune because she subconsciously wants to, then why did it lead her to you?"

My question made everybody silent. Goodwitch's eyes bore into Ditto, waiting for his rebuttal. Ditto had raised his hand to say something only to freeze as he processed the question. I was reveling in the fact that I was finally able to take the words out of Ditto's mouth.

Eventually, Ditto gathered his thoughts and snapped his fingers. "Oh! It's probably because I'll know where he is. Hey brat, you want to find Jaune, yeah?"

Violet's snapped out of her daze and nodded.

"Then what you have to do is walk down this hallway and turn right after passing the first right turn. That'll take you to the locker rooms. Once you're there, you just need to wait for your brother to arrive. Got it?" Ditto asks, Violet nodding at the question. "Good. Now get going you shin kicker."

With that, Violet ran off...again. What is it with Violet running away today?

"Ditto, Jaune and the rest of the classmates are still probably asleep. Why did you tell her to go to the locker room?" Goodwitch asked.

"What an elementary question Glynda. Judging by the length of the brats legs, I can say without a doubt that she would only make it to the ballroom after most of the students had finished their morning routine, meaning they'd be having breakfast at this time, making it a better choice to send her to the cafeteria. However I didn't send her to the cafeteria because I know for a fact that Jaune has woken up early and has eaten breakfast already, meaning that he'd be doing his morning workout by the time she got there." Ditto explained.

"So you sent her to the locker room."

Ditto nodded. "Yeah. Sure, she'll have to wait a bit longer but all students will be forced to go there today, him included. That means that if she follows my directions to the letter, she'll eventually meet up with Jaune."

"You're sure about these predictions?" I ask.

"Of course. Just like I'm sure that if Glynda takes the time right now to finish up her paperwork, she'll have legally worked enough to get a break for Sunday."

"I'm still on parole Ditto." Goodwitch huffed.

"Oh please. The students wouldn't fuck around during the morning of the initiation, they're on too tight a schedual. I'll even take the blame if you get in trouble." Ditto huffed back.

"...Then I'll take you up on your offer."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just go put your A's before your B's, while I 'watch' the kids with my good pal Gris and reminisce about the good times."

Goodwitch nodded and walked off until we couldn't see her, leaving me and Ditto in an awkward silence. It was a soothing silence, until Ditto did to the silence what he did to my family.

"I know we're enemies and all, got the whole 'Hunter-man vs Joke Grimm' thing going on. But I can't help but marvel at how big your baby blues are when you aren't squinting."

In an instant I had grabbed his collar and pinned him to the wall, pushing my knuckles into his neck. "Cut the crap. I told you to never come around my family ever again. But here you are, teaching at my son's school. Unlike the last time, I'm not gonna let you off easy. You're going to give me an explanation for your actions. Who knows, you might even get to live."

"Hehe,*Gack* w-whatever you say." He wheezed out with a chuckle. "But*Gasp* you might not be satisfied, exhibitionism doesn't really g-get me going."

I slammed him into the wall again. "I thought I told you to cut the crap. "

Ditto smiled at me. "I know. I just thought you'd like to do this in a more*Gasp* private location. Dust k-knows what'll happen to your reputation if a student sees us like this."

"But you said-"

"*Wheeze* I kidnapped your son, do you really t-think I wouldn't lie either? C-Come on Gris, y-you and I both know how stupid kids are, there's always bound t-to b*Gasp*be one idiot who f-fucks up getting into an academy b-because of tardiness." Ditto revealed before kicking me away. "I just had to get her away so we could have a chat like grown ups."

Both of us fell to the ground as we recovered from air loss. Getting up, we stared at each other before Ditto made a gesture to follow. So I did, begrudgingly letting my families worst enemy lead me to a private area.

* * *

(Location: Beacon locker room.)

(Time: Vol 1.)

(POV: Pyrrha Nikos.)

Hello there, I'm Pyrrha Nikos. Today I woke up, brushed my teeth, ate breakfast and then recalled a memory from the day prior. What is the memory of? Well, it was about a boy named Jaune Arc.

When I first met him, I thought he was just another fan coming to greet me. But instead of pointing out what every other fan already knew, he appeared to be more reserved. When he spoke to me, it was like speaking with a neighbor or a close friend. It was really refreshing. Unlike people who 'tried' to play it cool in front of me or making it clear that I was just a stepping stone for their own greatness, he acted like it didn't matter.

It made me feel good, normal, approachable and, most importantly of all, confuzzled. Why didn't he sound like he was somewhat familiar with who I am? I don't mean to stroke my own ego, but everyone and their grandma seems to have at least heard of me. Hell, you don't know how embarrassing it was to see 'myself' on an adult website for the first time. And yet, despite how far 'my' influence has reached, there was nothing in his voice that hinted at him knowing who I am.

By now, a normal person would probably just leave it at that and move on to something else. But once we went our separate ways, I found myself thinking about him...a lot, I even had a dream about him for dust sakes! It's like I'm somehow being drawn towards him.

I thought about him until I began thinking of the situation itself, seeking answers until I figured out 'why?'. Thinking about this had more results, which is good, but the results were less than likable half the time and were more theories than they were answers. It bothered me greatly.

And that is why I'm going to actually physically talk to Jaune instead of just pondering until I explode. I figured if my mind couldn't fix my issues then I'd use something more reliable and trained, my instincts. With the help of my most used ability, I'd be able to get some concrete answers. I'd be able to find out if he actually knows me and what these feelings of mine really are.

However I have a single, itsy bitsy problem that has taken the form of a red cape and blonde hair.

"Hey Jaune!" A girl with a red cape shouted as he walked into the locker room.

Jaune stopped in his tracks to look at the girl. "Hey Ruby. What's up?"

"Nothing much. I was just wondering where you were. Me and Yang were going to sit with you but we couldn't find you." She said.

The blonde girl snaked her arm over Jaune's shoulders. "Yeah, you should know better to leave girls alone like that. It hurts to connect the way we did only to have you disappear once the sun rises."

All of them were silent before they erupted with laughter. The red-I mean Ruby fell on her backside as the two blondes wiped tears from their eyes. Anybody could tell just by glancing at them that they were good friends.

This was my big issue right now, my big reason for being unable to put my plan into motion, the reason I'm awkwardly hiding behind a locker.

'I can't just walk over and butt into their chat, that'd be super rude! Plus if I walk over now, those girls will notice and probably sell me out and reveal my identity to Jaune.' I whimper silently at the thought before shaking my head, determination filling my eyes. 'Come on Pyrrha Nikos! Stop being a fraidy cat! It isn't rude to introduce yourself to new people. Besides, you aren't even sure that Jaune is ignorant of your identity.'

With these thoughts in mind, I forced my body to move forward, confident that I'd- 'Of course I may also be right and he doesn't know.' My body froze up and retreated further into my hiding spot. 'Damn you absent thoughts!'

Imprisoned by my fears once again I decided to go back to observing Jaune. It was the safest option until I could do this properly. And after carefully watching the three chat away, I caught a glimpse of the color purple speed by as it homed in on Jaune.

Jaune, in one precise motion, turned to embrace the attacker as it tried to merge with Jaune's stomach. "Jaaaaaune!"

"Violet!? What are you doing here!?" Jaune said with a panic, worry evident on his face.

The small child looked up at Jaune. "We didn't sleep together last night. I had such a bad sleep that I woke up three times. I was so scared!"

Jaune embraced her tighter, stroking her head to comfort her. It was an adorable sight, until the girl in yellow spoke up.

"So is this what you meant by 'personal reasons'? Just how young do you like them?" The girl asked, anger evident in her voice.

"I can already see this being an issue." Jaune sighed. "Yang, before you call the Vale police, let me point out that this is my little sister Violet. She has gone through a lot and has become very clingy to me, requiring me to sleep in the same bed to help her recover."

The girl in yellow, Yang, looked relieved. "That's good. You gave me quite the scare Jaune. I thought I was gonna need to teach you a lesson on how to treat ladies, especially young ones."

"Stop bullying big bro! He is the perfect-ist gentleperson in the world!" Jaune's sister yelled at the girl.

Jaune chuckled. "They aren't bullying me Violet, they are just doing what they're supposed to do if some pervert did something to you." Jaune explained.

"But she looked like she was going to hurt you…"

Jaune ruffled her hair. "They just misunderstood the situation my wee-lil-V. These girls wouldn't hurt me unless I deserved it. Here, I'll introduce them to you so you can see for yourself, OK?"

"...Ok."

Jaune turns Violet around to face the other girls as she adorably shuffled in their gaze. "Hello, I'm Violet Arc. The youngurt Arc of the Arc family."

She bowed at the two girls as they began fawning over her. Her adorable way to say 'youngest' seeping into their hearts.

Ruby walked up and held out her hand. "My name is Ruby Rose. It's nice to meet you Violet."

Violet clasped her hand with a smile. "Nice to meet you too Ruby Rosey. You have pretty eyes."

Ruby blushed and let her sister have a turn interacting with the tot. "My name is Yang Xiao Long, the coolest girl around. I'm Rubes's sister and might even become your sister too in the future."

'How bold.' I thought to myself as I waited for Violet's response.

Unlike Ruby, Yang didn't get a warm smile. "Why would you be my sister?"

"Well lets just say that if things go well, you can be my flower girl." Yang hinted to the small girl.

Violet was not pleased as she growled at Yang, causing everyone in the room to wince. "No way! I won't let you steal my big bro away from me!"

"I'm just joking." Yang tried to explain.

Violet glared at her. "You're lying. Your trying to get the best big bro in the world all to yourself. But he is mine! I don't need anyone else so long as I have Jaune!"

Violet began throwing a tantrum. This made the sisters gingerly step backwards to avoid the child's wrath. Violet's tantrum was halted with Jaune pulling her into his arms and lifting her up. Instantly she became calm as she buried her head into the crook of his neck and held him tightly. After some time passed Jaune stood up.

"We'll talk later." He said to Ruby and Yang with a quiet tone.

"I'm sorry Jaune. I didn't know she'd react like that." Yang apologize.

Jaune waved off her apology. "It's alright. This is what I meant when I said she was clingy. We'll have more time to talk once were students but for now it would be best if you stayed away from her, until she calms down."

With that Jaune left Yang and Ruby, both having an awkward look to them as they collected themselves, and walked towards my hiding spot. Seeing my chance, I decided to make my presence known.

"Hello again Jaune." I greeted as I walked over to him.

He blinks and looks at me with a smile. "Hey Pyrrha. How's my favorite locker stalker?"

"You knew?" I asked with a wince, causing him to laugh.

"Pyrrha, the next time you want to be stealthy, I suggest you hide your entire body instead of just your arm." He critiqued.

'I feel so embarrassed. He probably thinks I'm weird now!' I thought as I curled up on the floor.

"From what I've heard, that stealth tactic works better with a cardboard box." Jaune teased.

My blush grew bigger as I got up and pinched him. "Stop being mean!"

He took a step back, still giggling at my plight. "Sorry, sorry. It's just so easy to do. Tell you what, I'll treat you to something as an apology, how does that sound?"

Before I could respond, the child in his arms began moving and looked over at me with wonder in her eyes. The look in her eyes was adorable but made my instincts kick in. I was confused at first but soon realized the fear in that look as she began to point at me.

"Pumpkin!" She shouted.

Both myself and Jaune paused. For a second there I thought she was going to fan girl and rat me out. But apparently I was wrong, she called me pumpkin instead. What a relief...but, why pumpkin?

"Violet! You can't say things like that!" Jaune scolded her before turning to me. "I'm so sorry Pyrrha! I never would have guessed that she'd give you a hard time for being a red-head."

I shrugged. "I don't really mind."

"But Violet shouldn't do things like that…"

"Why are you mad at me big bro? All I did was call pumpkin, pumpkin." Violet asked with confusion.

"Violet, we just talked about this!"

"Are you being mean because pumpkin is here? Do you like her better than me?" She probed, her eyes becoming desperate.

"Here we go again." He whispers to himself. "Violet, I don't like her more than you. I've only just met her while your the best little sister in the world."

His words didn't calm her. "But pumpkin is so much prettier than me!"

"Sweety, while Pyrrha is pretty. What really matters is what's on the inside." Jaune tried to persuade her as I blushed a bit at his complement.

Violet began tearing up more. "But that's unfair! I have mus-kalls and white rattlers in my body. She has sugar flakes and marshmallows in her body!"

With those words I had a revelation while poor Jaune looked more confused than ever. Everything she's said to me until now has been referencing Pumpkin Pete cereal. I should have noticed it sooner to be honest. Good thing she didn't completely rat me out to Jaune. Speaking of which, I should probably help him out.

"May I try?" I asked the concerned brother.

He huffed and moved out of the way. "Be my guest."

I kneeled down to her level and put a hand on the child's head. "You really love your brother don't you?"

"...yeah. I love him most in the whoooole world" She admitted with a sniffle.

"Do you love him enough to let him have some space?" I ask.

"P-Pyrrha!?"

"Why would I need to give him space? So pretties like you can take him away!?" She asked back with malice.

"No. You need to give him space so that you don't cause him trouble. You don't need to actually give him space, you just need to remember that causing trouble for your brother will make him sad." I explained. "Do you want your brother to be sad?"

"Ne-Never! He's the only big brother I have! If he gets sad, he'll leave again. I don't want him to leave again…" Violet began to sob again.

'Leave again?' I thought to myself before refocusing my attention. "That's why you gotta give him space. I know you love to give him all the love in the world, but you gotta do it differently. You need to give him love without making him distressed. That way everyone can be happy."

Violet wiped her nose and looked me in the eye. "But what about the pretties? What if a pretty takes him away?"

While pondering her question I looked over at Jaune, who was mystified at the scene he was seeing, for an answer. He didn't deliver, but my brain did, it made me recall his teasing and prompted my mischievous side to give me the answer.

With a devilish smile, I said. "Then you'll just have to marry him before anyone else does."

Like a vampire, Violet seemed to drain Jaune's mood as her face became as bright as the sun, while his fell into despair. It made me feel giddy to see that look on his face, made me laugh actually. But that laughter stopped when Violet gave me a hug.

"Thank you big sis pumpkin." She said.

I hugged her back. "Your welcome superstar."

We stayed there for a second before Violet whispered 'I won't lose to you.' in my ear, causing shivers to go down my spine. I let go of her and watched Violet run to her brothers side and confidently held his hand instead of clinging to his arm.

Jaune scratched the back of his head. "Are you secretly a goddess?"

"Maybe~. Why do you ask?" I say with a smug smirk.

Jaune gives me a pained smile. "I've never seen someone fix so much in so little time, while simultaneously creating dangerous amounts of chaos."

"Call it a gift."

From there, Violet, Jaune and myself bantered between each other as myself and Jaune collected our gear. Jaune and I playfully tried to get under the other's skin while listening to Violet's many stories about Jaune and her. For once, I felt normal, like I belonged. I'd do just about anything to keep things as they are.

"Ugh! How bad can this day go!?" An annoyed voice said as they walked into the locker rooms.

From the tone of her voice she sounded like she was very serious in nature, like she was all business and no games. It was the voice of someone who had something to prove.

"Oh no…" Jaune whispered.

She walked past us, rubbing one of her eyes, before stopping and looking back at us, back at me. "Dust...It's Pyrrha Nikos!"

'Oh no…' I thought to myself.

She walked up to me and held out a hand. "My name is Weiss Schnee, heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. It's a pleasure to finally meet the one and only Pyrrha Nikos."

With a pained smile I took her hand. "Nice to meet you too."

"Is that another one of your friends big bro?" Violet piped up.

"That my sweet-lil-V is what we in the business call a T-Rex. They are ferocious and attack anything in sight, but if you stay very still, they won't be able to see you." Jaune said to Violet.

Weiss looked at them with rage. "You!"

"Note to self, they also have echolocation…"

"I'm not in the mood to deal with you today. First, I woke up folded and stuck in my sleeping bag. Then I find out that all of my hair products have been replaced with bottles of butter. And then; I find out that my weapon has been deconstructed and scattered throughout Beacon, with only a map to help me find the pieces." Weiss lists off.

Jaune whistles. "That's rough."

"Save it! I've had an awful day today so far and don't want you barbarian to make it worse. Especially now that I've met my future partner, the one and only Pyrrha Nikos!" Weiss snaps at him.

'Should I feel bad that I don't want you as a partner? I feel that I should feel bad.' I thought to myself.

"...Are you on your exclamation mark?" Violet asks Weiss, forcing me to hold in my laugh once I understood what she meant.

Weiss looks at violet and scowls. "When did Beacon have such low standards? First the child and now a toddler? Dust have mercy..."

"You smell like a perfume store." Violet pointed out.

Weiss gripped her nose while shaking her head. "Calm down Weiss. The one and only Pyrrha Nikos is right here. You have to make a good impression."

"You've said 'the one and only Pyrrha Nikos' thrice now princess. Yeah, she's the only Pyrrha Nikos in the world but you keep saying her name like she's above all of us." Jaune points out.

Weiss smiles. "The brute is finally learning his place."

"I don't get it, what makes her so special?" Jaune asks, causing my heart to skip a beat.

Weiss looked at him, flabbergasted. "What do you mean 'what makes her so special'!? Do you know who she is!?"

"Pyrrha Nikos." Jaune responded.

"Pumpkin." Violet responded.

Weiss grit her teeth. "Do you know what she is!?"

"A Beacon student." Jaune responded.

"Made of cardboard." Violet responded.

"I'm sick and tired of you!" Weiss snaps. "You've gotten on my nerves since yesterday and personally I have had enough! The world would be a better place if you'd just disappear, especially if it's for good! Nobody would notice your absence, I bet everyone would celebrate your departure!"

Weiss was beginning to make me uncomfortable, her violent way of speech being a cause for concern. But what was worrying me the most was the look on Violet's face. She looked like she was about to snap too after that comment about Jaune disappearing but held herself back. Instead, she gained a look of a determined sea captain that was willing to do all she could to save her crew.

Violet stepped in front of Jaune with her arms spread defensively, ready to save her brother from harm. She took a deep breath until her cheeks inflated and held it in. Everyone involved grew curious at what she was planning on doing.

Her plan was...unexpected. Violet pursed her lips began blowing air at Weiss. But after a few seconds her tongue found its way through the passage, turning it into a violent raspberry. Weiss had to cover her eyes as spit went everywhere.

After turning blue in the face, Violet stopped and looked at her adversary with shock. "What!? Big bro, why didn't she blow away!?"

Jaune laughed. "Oh how you crack me up my sweet-lil-V. She isn't made of dust silly, her family owns a company that creates and spreads dust all over the world."

Violet turned to Weiss with a newfound realization. "So she's the one who makes all of our stuff dusty? She's the reason we need to clean the floors all the time!?"

Jaune laughed again at her cute thought process. Heck, even I couldn't help but giggle into my hand. I know I shouldn't laugh, especially with how livid Weiss looks, but I just can't help it.

"W-W-Wha!? That's not at all what my company does! We don't go around making things dusty! The Schnee Dust company produces and distributes Dust, the heart of all technology, to all ends of the world. If it weren't for us, soldiers wouldn't have weapons to defend us, doctors wouldn't have the tools to save us and entertainers wouldn't be able to amuse us!" Weiss informed us in an egocentric manner.

"You sure like that stool you call a pedestal." Jaune quietly commented.

Weiss continued. "Dust is the heart of our society, the Schnee family is the top distributor of Dust, therefore we are the biggest reason our society is what it is! I know it's hard for an idiot like you to understand, so I'll put it like this. Dust is the pretty sparkles that is used for everything you do."

"You're a dummy. Dust doesn't power anything, it just makes you sneeze. The stuff you're talking about is called rainbow powder, everyperson knows that!" Violet challenged. "And rainbow powder isn't used for everything. Persons don't use it to bandage boo-boos, persons don't need it to eat and persons did everything on their own before they found rainbow powder." Violet pointed out.

Weiss grit her teeth. "You-!"

"That's enough." Jaune said as he put a hand on Weiss's shoulder.

"Get off me!" Weiss yelled as she tried to pry his hand away.

"Weiss, you desperately need to chill out. This isn't like you." Jaune pointed out to her.

"You don't know me you mongrel!"

"True, I haven't known you for long and you didn't exactly make a good impression when we first met. But I know you enough to know your acting extremely hostile, unfocused and erratic, a fact I know isn't like you. Probably has something to do to an awful sleep and the constant torment you've endured here so far." Jaune explained.

"I am not acting extremely hostile! Or unfocused! Or erratic! I'm perfectly fine and completely composed!" She growled.

"Weiss, you got outplayed by a pre-teen who's mental age fluctuates every hour. I think my assumption has merit." Jaune says back. "You are beautiful, talented, smart, skilled and probably deadly in combat. Sure, you're rough around the edges when it comes to conversing with us commoners but I know with enough time you'll become capable of that as well. So long as you remember to avoid scaring people off with that attitude."

"..."

"Now if you two ladies will excuse me, I need to drop my sister off before the initiation starts as well as get ready for said initiation. I suggest you two do the same, before the rest of students crowd the locker room."

With that he began moving to, I assume, the initiations location while mumbling 'now to figure out where Ditto hid my crap.'. Needless to say, I was cursing him for leaving me here with Weiss-no offence to her of course!

Weiss huffs and looks at me. "I apologize you had to see such an...unsightly display."

"Oh, um...it's no problem. I uh-know how hard mornings can sometimes be." I comforted her with my false smile.

"Quite…" She agreed, rubbing her eyes a bit.

This action drew my attention to some key details about Weiss. Her hair seemed disheveled and her eyes had bags under them. These details wouldn't be too unusual if it weren't for Weiss's background. She was a Schnee, a prestigious family, and a known singer, a celebrity like myself. Both titles that require one to keep up appearances.

Yes, for family's like the Schnees and people like professional singers, appearance is key. In both situations, people are often taught how to put on a show, to appear like nothing is wrong despite the strife. So for her to look like this despite her lifestyle is shocking. Jaune had a point with his claims it seems, Weiss must not be at her best.

"Weiss…" I cautiously begin. "Maybe Jaune was right about your condition."

"Y-You too!?" Weiss asked, flabbergasted.

"To be fair Weiss, you don't exactly look the part of a Schnee-not that you need to be or anything! It's just, you look like a cosplayer who could only be bothered to put the costume on." I explain, a tad more blunt then I expected.

"What are you talking about?" She asks before realizing something, pulling out her scroll and activating the camera function. "My eyes have bags!? They never have bags! And my-my hair! I forgot to do my hair! Wait-is that-it can't-is that a wrinkle!?"

'Wrinkle?' I thought as I gazed at her face for such a thing. "I think you might be seeing things Weiss."

With a sigh she puts her scroll away. "You may be right...I'm sorry for showing such an embarrassing sight miss Nikos. As much as it pains me, it appears the mongrel was right. Perhaps I am a bit under the weather."

"I think 'a bit under the weather' is an understatement."

"What do you mean." She asks.

I pause and try to find my words before huffing. "I'll be honest with you Weiss. You didn't exactly introduce yourself in the best way. You interrupted my conversation with new friends, belittled them and then proceeded to argue with a child and, I quote, lost. All of this led me to believe you were a fairly rude and obnoxious person."

Weiss's eyes trailed downward. "I…see."

"But thanks to Jaune I know better now. He pointed out the fact you're probably under tons of stress because of the torment he mentioned. Heck, your eyes alone show how tired you are. But what really sent the original thoughts packing was his willingness to see past all that and point out your good points to help you save face."

Weiss's head snapped upward with confusion. "He...was helping?"

I nod. "Yes. It was obvious you two have a history of sorts, it makes sense considering the hostility of your bickering. Yet, despite your feud, he was willing to point out potential reasons for your behavior and even pointed out your strengths. He gave you an out while also telling others of your true worth when you're at your best, like he was saying 'she's like this to me but won't be for you.' to everyone listening."

"Huh…"

"I'd even say that his words gave me a better opinion of you too. His facts helped me understand your actions and without him, I'd probably completely glance over your obvious fatigue. It helped me see you for you, just like I want people to see me for me."

"What do you mean by that?" Weiss asks curiously.

"Weiss, it's no secret that we are both well known people. We both have fans and enemies lurking behind every corner. With that popularity comes a mask for us to masquerade as we pretend we're something we're not. It's tiring, tiring to become friends with people who only want to befriend the pretend you."

"Yeah, I get that. It always pains me to befriend people who are only after material gain, aggravating to have people judge me based on my family's heritage."

"Precisely. To everyone I'm 'the invincible girl', the 'one and only Pyrrha Nikos' who trains to keep her title and only rests to eat and sleep." Weiss flinched at that. "But in reality, I'm just a normal girl with a talent for fighting who wishes for a normal life; a life where I can go places without paparazzi, a life where I can admit that the art made by Boux Glow looks like spilled condiments during an accident at a fast food place."

"I thought you said you liked the creativity and imagery that Boux Glow's paintings."

"Nope, I actually really dislike his work but never had the heart to tell him. I once said one of his paintings looked like a noble lion. In actuality, I thought it was a frog."

"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately." A voice commands from the intercom.

"...shall we?" I ask as I look over to Weiss.

"Yes." She nods.

And with that we both made our way to the cliff-side. Once we got there, we were directed to our own individual square based on our arrival and told to wait for the rest of the group. This gave us all a chance to look around at our surroundings.

Most of the Beacon candidates looked around for a means of curbing their boredom, while others used it to distract them from their early morning jitters. However, side from the forest and the towering structure that was Beacon, there was much to speak of in terms of geography that could be called entertaining. But the people we stood before made up for this.

There was the Headmaster Ozpin, who stood stoically as he sipped from his coffee mug. He looked over the candidates with indifference as he made small talk with those who surrounded him. Monitoring them more than he was us and acting as a divider between the rest of the onlookers.

On Ozpin's right side appeared to be a family of 3 made up of a mother, father and...Violet!? They all seemed to be searching the initiates for someone specific as they all struggled to stay together. The male had his arms crossed as he sighed at Violet, who kept trying to run off only to be trapped by the older, smiling women's right hand. Normal family antics would be the first thing to come to mind. But the pressure their presence had pushed those thoughts 6 feet under.

Then there was Beacon's deputy, Glynda, was standing at Ozpin's left as she seemed to glare at us all, though that may be because of the distance. She held a riding crop in her hand that many people, including myself, seem to instinctively fear for reasons we can't describe. It did make us feel better to see her focus her attention to her left though.

To the left of Glynda was the victim caught in her gaze, seemingly unaffected by her presence as he smirked at us all. Upon closer inspection the victim could be identified as the speaker from the other day. The speaker held his shoulder with his one arm, using it as a makeshift scarf as he looked us over as if to scan us.

With a quick inhale, Ozpin began speaking. "For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams'. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today." Glynda adds, creating a wine of disappointment to my right.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." Ozpin explains as the wine becomes a groan. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

"Whaaaat?!" The owner of the previous groans shouts.

"Since there will be opposition, he advises that the initiates do not hesitate to destroy everything in their path, as the possibility of dying is very real. They will also be discreetly evaluated for their performances during the initiation process, but the instructors will not intervene. The objective is to seek a relic, one per pair of partners, in a temple on the other end of the forest and guard it, along with their standings. They are then to return to the cliff that they are currently standing on with the relic."

A relic huh? If I'm correct, this will act as an escort mission of sorts that will be used to gauge our ability to work with others on the fly. What a fun way to do two things at once! That being said, this will be used to decide our partners so I might want to pull some strings a bit to get my desired outcome.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die." Ozpin continues. "You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

"I have a question, Ozpin." Jaune speaks up. "Do you mean it when you say 'destroy everything in your path'?"

Ozpin nods. "Indeed. Now, take your positions."

Everyone gets into position, ready to be launched. But before we're shot through the air, I turn to Weiss.

"Hey Weiss."

"Yes miss Nikos?"

"Even if we don't end up on the same team, I'm more than willing to give a friendship with you a try." I say with a smile

Weiss's face lit up. "Same to you miss Ni-Pyrrha."

With a nod of understanding, I brace myself for my sudden propulsion into the sky. Within seconds I'm launched into the air, the wind blowing through my red hair as I plan and execute my landing. Now came the critical part, securing Jaune as my partner.

'Sorry Weiss but out of all my options, he's my first pick.' I think to myself as I spot my target, readying my spear to pin my prey. 'Please don't hold it against me.'

I throw the spear at Jaune with the hopes of catching his hood, a hope I'm confident will happen. However, despite my confidence something felt wrong, something bad was about to happen. A bad something in the form of a spear, my spear, that was in my face seconds later.

The tip of my spear pressed against my cheek, drawing the tiniest amount of blood. I had stopped it with my polarity just in time, any sooner and I'd have been pierced by my own spear. My oh my the mysteries about you just seem to pile up Jaune Arc.

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**Spiffy: Ha! You thought the reviews were done! But no, I have my own review for you guys! Ahem. You've been amazing and have really pushed this story by leaps and bounds. You have my gratitude. We are reaching the beginning of the foretold chapters, where this series will truly start! But I only have 2 more chapters until I reach my chapter cap for this series, meaning you'll have to wait until I reach the same threshold for my other fanfics, effectively cliff hanging you all. But don't be sad, good things are going to come.**

**PS. The whole 'not having a job' thing was written a month ago along with most of this chapter's contents. However, now I do have a job and so things are going to change drastically. I have a good plan for the future though so just wait and see.**


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